Annual Study

PSKC

Panel Study on Korean Children (PSKC) is a long-term study to track the growth process of Korean children. Currently being conducted by the KICCE-a national research institute under the Prime Minister’s office-PSKC is the first national panel study on newborn babies in Korea.

Study Target

  • Study PopulationHouseholds of babies born between April and July 2008 in sampled medical institutes whose annual delivery count is 500 or higher as of 2006
  • SampleExcepting those eligible to the exclusion criteria below and those refused to participate in the study, 2,562 pilot sample households that had an intention to participate in the study were contacted. Of the pilot sample households, 2,150 households were sampled.
  • Exclusion criteria
    • - Mother cannot communicate in Korean.
    • - Mother's postpartum health is extremely poor.
    • - Infant/Mother has a serious illness.
    • - Infant is put up for adoption.
    • - Infant is of multiple pregnancy.
    • - Mother is aged 18 years or less.

Sampling

PSKC employed a stratified multi-stage sampling technique. In Stage 1, sampling was carried out in medical institutes where babies were born. In Stage 2, pilot sample was extracted from households with newborns in the sampled medical institutes. In Stage 3, sampling was done among the pilot sample households that had an intention to take part in PSKC.
  • 01

    In Stage 1, medical institutes(primary sampling) were sampled using a list of medical institutes with delivery count of 500 or more in 2006 excluding those in Jeju-do.

    Based on the delivery count in 2006, the nation was stratified per each of the 6 zones such as Seoul, Gyeonggi/Incheon, Chungcheon/Gangwon, Gyeongbuk, Gyeongnam, and Jeolla. Within each stratification, medical institutes are aligned according to their locations. Thirty medical institutes were sampled using a systematic sampling technique.
  • 02In Stage 2, the 30 sampled medical institutes were visited to sample households with neonates as the secondary sampling unit. At individual medical institute, PSKC was explained to mothers who had a baby born from April to July, 2008. After obtaining consent for participation in the study, a list of 2,562 pilot sample households was made.
  • 03In Stage 3, among households with newborns included in the list of pilot samples, 2,150 that have actually responded to the main study were confirmed as study sample.