Dong-A University Disaster Management Graduate Students Achieve Excellence at National Public Administration Graduate Student Conference

Dong-A University (President Lee Haewoo) announced on the 11th that graduate students from the Department of Disaster Management received the Excellent Presentation Award and the Excellence Award at the 10th National Graduate Student Academic Conference for Public Administration.

Graduate students from the Department of Disaster Management at Dong-A University are receiving awards at the National Graduate Student Academic Conference for Public Administration. Photo by Dong-A University

This academic conference was jointly hosted by the Korean Association for National Policy Management and the Graduate Student Association of the Department of Public Administration at Yonsei University. It was held at Yonsei University on July 3, with the theme "Waves of Transition: New Imagination for Affection and Policy." A total of 23 papers were presented by students from eight universities nationwide.

Doctoral students Lee Gunwoo and Na Yeji received the Excellent Presentation Award for their study titled "A Study on Disaster Managers' SOC Perception and Ego-Network Structure after Disaster Experience." Through Antonovsky's Sense of Coherence (SOC) theory and ego-network analysis, the research qualitatively revealed that "practical cooperation" and "emotional support" from superiors and colleagues play a critical role in disaster managers' ability to cope with their duties.

In addition, doctoral student Baek Seungchang received the Excellence Award for his study, "A Study on the Subjectivity of Disaster Management Graduate Students Regarding Community Risk Reduction (CRR)." Based on the CRR model of the U.S. National Fire Academy (NFA), this research used the Q methodology to identify five types of policy implementers' perceptions, such as "integrated implementation strategy type" and "community philosophy-based type," emphasizing the importance of tailored strategies and complementary team composition.

Furthermore, students Na Yeji and Lee Gunwoo analyzed the perception differences between fire and coast guard personnel regarding disaster superstitions and suggested the need for institution-specific education. Master's student Kim Mingyu contributed to academic diversity by presenting a study on the development of spatial-based disaster risk assessment techniques.

Doctoral student Baek Seungchang commented, "It was a valuable opportunity to academically interact with outstanding graduate students from across the country," and added, "I will continue to grow as a researcher who bridges theory and practice."

Professor Lee Donggyu, the supervising professor, evaluated, "This award is a meaningful achievement that demonstrates the department's expertise and research capabilities, as it presented practical alternatives by deeply analyzing the psychological mechanisms of disaster managers and the perceptions of policy implementers."