In recent business activities, well-being-based management approaches have become increasingly important. Consideration of consumer well-being is one of them. In particular, social demand and interest in health are incredibly high, and the health-related services market has significantly expanded. However, since the WHO's definition of health was established, the concept of health has become multi-dimensional. There is much overlap with other concepts, such as well-being and quality of life. As a result, even for health-related services that are supposed to contribute to consumers' health, the critical term "health" is still used ambiguously by both service providers and consumers. It could increase the uncertainty of the benefits of the services and cause difficulties in the continued use of services for consumers.

This study investigated the impacts of two different health claim regulatory systems, FoSHU (Foods for Specified Health Uses) and FFC (Foods with Function Claims) systems, in Japan on consumer evaluations of food products in terms of healthfulness. The FoSHU system was introduced in 1991 as an individual product approval system to allow product-specific health claims, while the FFC system was introduced lately in 2015 as a notification system like NLEA (Nutrition Labeling and Education Act) in the US. The latter system seems advantageous over the former in terms of shortening the product development period. However, the FoSHU system awards brand with a symbolic logo designed for FoSHU foods, whereas the FFC system does not. Which system leads to higher consumers’ healthfulness perceptions? The results of ANOVA showed that, if the health functions of the food product are not attributed to the product category, but to a specific food product brand, health claims have a strong impact on healthfulness. In contrast, if the health functions are attributed to the entire product category, health claims do not have a strong impact on healthfulness perception. In the latter cases, the FoSHU symbolic logo helps consumers to identify functional foods. Thus, in this study, it is suggested that, in Japan, the new US style health claim regulatory system is affective in the limited product categories. Public policy makers should recognize the important role of the symbolic logo for the previous system and consider introducing another logo to the new system.

This study developed learning content and web pages providing information on Health/Functional Food (HFF) for consumers who come across information indiscriminately from a variety of advertising media such as the Internet and TV. After coming to an understanding of the current situation through literature review and fact-finding, we collected information and commercials on HFF that are exposed to consumers. Focusing on advanced countries such as the U.S. and Japan, we examined the current status of consumer education programs, especially in terms of HFF industry. Further, we referred to the guidelines for consumer education provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and monitored the information from a web site that sells dietary supplementary products in the U.S. In addition, we surveyed consumer information on foods for special health use provided by the Japanese National Institute of Health & Nutrition, and investigated a DB of raw materials of function food (functionality/safety documents). Upon a literature review, the 13 functions of HFF were classified. As a result of conducting interviews with consumers, we developed content that was fit for consumers’ perspectives. Through this research, we established a web page to enable people to search for information by function and then by raw material. After searching for information by raw materials, searching products by raw materials can be done in cooperation with E-marketplace. Subsequently developed content and education programs were offered on an HFF web page, which has been in operation since 2005. Therefore, it is expected that appropriate information on HFF will be available.

This study investigated consumers’ recognition on shelf life of health functional foods to set up their rational expiration date. For this study 107 male and female adults aged 20 to 59 years were randomly selected as major consumers of health functional foods. And their data were analyzed with SPSS 17.0. The questionnaire included questions asking a consumer's recognition on the shelf life of health functional foods and how to treat health function food passing its shelf life. In this study, the consumers were found to pay attentions considerably to the shelf life. But most of them did not know an accurate meaning of the shelf life of health functional food and mistook it for expiry date. In addition, the consumers doubted safety of health functional foods passing the shelf life. Therefore, education for consumers about an accurate meaning of the shelf life was needed. The results of this study were considered to be helpful to set up a reasonable expiration date for health functional food.

건강식품 및 원료의 유효성분 및 위해요소 조사분석에 관한 연구의 기초조사로 건강식품에 대한 소비자의 의식조사를 실시하였다. 건강식품에 관한 이용실태 조사와 건강식품에 대한 객관적 지식정도 조사로 구성된 설문지를 이용하여 서울, 경기 지역에 거주하는 방문 및 협조가 가능한 20세 이상의 일반 소비자 1000명을 대상으로 1995년 10월부터 96년 2월에 걸쳐 직접 방문하고 설문지를 배부하여 설명한 후 조사대상자가 직접 기입하게 하는 방법으로 조사하였다. 882부를 회수(회수율 88%)하였으나 이중 불완전한 응답 23부를 제외한 859부(유효회수율 86%)를 SAS프로그램을 이용하여 통계처리하였다. 조사대상자의 사회경제적 여건에 대하여는 단순빈도와 백분율을 구하였고 교차표를 이용하여 결혼 여부, 월수입, 교육정도 등의 사회 경제적 여건과의 통계적 연관성을 파악하였다. 건강식품에 관한 이용실태 조사결과로는 응답자의 58.8%가 건강식품을 사용한 경험이 있었으며 68.2%는 건강식품의 효능을 믿는다고 응답하고 있어 건강식품에 대한 관심도가 매우 큰 것으로 나타났다. 건강식품에 대한 가장 큰 기대효과는 전체적 건강유지에 도움을 주는 것(59.8%)이라고 응답하였으며 가장 큰 부정적 견해로는 과대선전(52.1%)이라고 응답하였다. 건강식품에 대한 정보 선택 경로로는 주로 친지의 권유나 소개(30.6%)로 이용하고 있었으며 우리나라 식품법에서 건강보조식품의 등록관리사실은 63.7%가 모르고 있다고 응답하여 응답자의 과반수 이상이 건강식품의 행정적 관리사실에 무지한 것으로 나타났다. 건강식품의 등록관리 사실을 알고 있는 건강식품의 종류로는 로얄제리(22.7%), 스쿠알렌(16.0%), 정제어유(15.1%), 유산균(10.6%), 알로에(8.8%)순으로 나타났다. 건강식품과 약품(또는 한약)과의 차별인식 조사결과에서는 응답자의 84.2%가 건강식품과 한약이 다르다고 생각하면서도 가장 잘 알고있는 건강식품의 종류와 약품(또는 한약)의 종류를 묻는 두 문항에 모두 인삼(22.7%, 41.7%)을 가장 많이 응답하여 전체적으로 건강식품과 약품의 구별을 제대로 하지 못하는 것으로 나타나 이를 위한 계몽과 교육이 시급함을 알 수 있었다.

건강식품 및 원료의 유효성분 및 위해요소 조사분석에 관한 연구의 기초조사로 건강식품에 대한 소비자의 의식조사를 실시하였으며 1차적으로 건강과 식습관에 관한 소비자 의식구조에 대하여 분석하였다. 설문지를 이용하여 서울, 경기 지역에 거주하는 방문 및 협조가 가능한 20세 이상의 일반 소비자 1000명을 대상으로 1995년 10월부터 96년 2월에 걸쳐 직접 방문하고 설문지를 배부하여 설명한 후 조사 대상자가 직접 기입하게 하는 방법으로 조사하였다. 882부를 회수(회수율 88%)하였으나 이중 불완전한 응답 23부를 제외한 859부(유효회수율 86%)를 SAS프로그램을 이용하여 통계 처리하였다. 조사 대상자의 사회경제적 여건에 대하여는 단순빈도와 백분율을 구하였고 교차표를 이용하여 결혼 여부, 월수입, 교육정도 등의 사회경제적 여건과의 통계적 연관성을 파악하였다. 조사결과 건강유지를 위해 가장 중요하게 고려하는 사항으로는 식습관(39.8%)이라고 답하였으며 93.9%가 식습관에 의해 질병에 걸릴 수 있다고, 97.1%가 식습관에 의해 질병이 치료될 수 있다고 믿고 있어 건강과 식습관이 매우 밀접한 관계가 있음을 인식하고 있었다. 가장 염려되는 질병으로는 암(30.6%), 성인병(14.1%), 사고에 의한 질병(12.6%), 비만(10%) 순이였고 식습관에 의해 발병할 수 있다고 믿는 질병의 종류에는 당뇨병(35.6%), 비만증(22.4%), 고혈압(12.8%), 변비(12.7%), 암(7.9%) 순이였으며 식습관에 의해 치료할 수 있다고 믿는 질병의 종류에는 당뇨병(40.1%), 비만증(25.9%), 변비(16.5%), 고혈압(7.4%), 암(3.3%) 순으로 나타나 당뇨병과 비만증은 식습관과 매우 밀접하다고 인식하고 있는 반면 가장 염려되는 암에 대해서는 큰 기대를 하고 있지 않는 것으로 나타났다.

The paper examines critical factors affecting consumer behavioral intentions in accepting online health communication through social networking sites. Unlike recent research under this topic, the paper assimilates some components of service quality dimensions and consumer behavior theories. The paper employs factor analysis and structural equation modelling analysis with latent variables to identify critical factors from the survey data collected from Korean consumers. The results of the study identifies three major constructs: consumer needs for health information, the perceived value of tangible attributes of health information providers, and the perceived value of intangible attributes of health information providers. The results show that consumer needs for health information and the tangible and intangible attributes of health information providers should be considered as important antecedents of accepting online health communication through social networking sites. The findings suggest that the success of online health communication via social networking sites largely depends on the tangible and intangible attributes of health information providers.