Comparative Study of Adolescents’ Mental Health between Multicultural Family and Monocultural Family in Korea

Maternal Involvement in Education, Bicultural Acceptance, and School Adjustment: An Autoregressive Cross-Lagged Modeling Study among Adolescents from Multicultural Families

This study examined the associations between maternal involvement in education and bicultural acceptance and school adjustment during the first year of middle school among adolescents from Korean multicultural families as well as the reciprocal relationships between bicultural acceptance and school adjustment during the three years of middle school. The present study used three-wave longitudinal data of 1185 dyads of adolescents (50.8% girls; mean age = 12.96 ± 0.35 years at the first wave) and their immigrant mothers (mean age = 43.54 ± 5.19 years at the first wave), who participated in the Multicultural Adolescents Panel Study. An autoregressive cross-lagged modeling analysis revealed that maternal involvement in education was significantly and positively associated with adolescents' bicultural acceptance and school adjustment in the first year of middle school. Individual levels of bicultural acceptance and school adjustment among adolescents remained moderately stable over the three years. Whereas the positive effects of school adjustment on bicultural acceptance were significant over time, the effects of bicultural acceptance on school adjustment were not. Finally, this study highlights the roles of intervention programs (e.g., parent and multicultural education) in facilitating maternal involvement in education and school adjustment as well as in increasing bicultural acceptance among minority youths.

A longitudinal study of immigrant mothers' destination-language proficiency and their children's psychological well-being: Evidence and mechanisms from a study in South Korea

RATIONALE

Despite the well-established link between an immigrant's destination-language proficiency and psychological well-being, little is known about the relationship between an immigrant's destination-language proficiency and well-being of their children.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated whether and how immigrant mothers' Korean proficiency is associated with life satisfaction and depressive symptoms among their children in South Korea. A comprehensive set of potential underlying mechanisms was also examined.

METHODS

Using four waves of data from the Multicultural Adolescents Panel Study (MAPS), this study estimated fixed effects regression models to reduce the possibility of bias due to individual-level heterogeneity. To test for mediation formally, Sobel mediation tests were conducted.

RESULTS

Fixed effects estimates suggested that immigrant mothers' Korean proficiency is positively associated with their children's psychological well-being. Specifically, a one-standard-deviation increase in Korean proficiency was associated with an increase in life satisfaction by 13% of a standard deviation and a decrease in depressive symptoms by 9% of a standard deviation. Mediation tests revealed that this association is explained by a combination of social-psychological factors. Friend support was the most salient mediator, followed by lower acculturation stress, positive perceptions of local community, and teacher support.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of this study suggest that efforts to improve immigrant mothers' destination-language proficiency would also benefit their children's psychological well-being. Furthermore, promoting children's relationships with peers at school may mitigate the negative psychological consequences of immigrant mothers' limited language proficiency.

School and Bicultural Factors as Mediators between Immigrant Mothers' Acculturative Stress and Adolescents' Depression in Korea

In Korea, marriages between Korean men and foreign women have surged since the late 1990s, resulting in public interest in the psychosocial adjustment of their children. This study examined the mediating effects of immigrant mothers' school involvement, adolescents' school adjustment, and bicultural acceptance on the relationship between the mothers' acculturative stress and adolescents' depression, as well as whether the structural relationships differed by the sex of adolescents. Data were collected from 1238 dyads of first-grade students (605 boys, 633 girls; age = 12.97 ± 0.35 years) in Korean middle schools and their immigrant mothers (age = 43.52 ± 5.13 years) who participated in the Multicultural Adolescents Panel Study. The structural equation modeling analysis revealed that mothers' acculturative stress was indirectly and positively related to adolescents' depression through (1) the serial mediations of mothers' school involvement and adolescents' school adjustment and (2) the individual mediation of adolescents' school adjustment. Furthermore, the multigroup analysis indicated that the relationships between adolescents' school adjustment and depression and between adolescents' bicultural acceptance and depression significantly differed between male and female adolescents. The study provides directions for schools and communities to increase immigrant mothers' school involvement and to facilitate their children's school adjustment and bicultural acceptance.

Predicting multicultural adolescents' depression in South Korea: Roles of ego-resilience and social support

PURPOSE

Depressive symptoms among adolescents are a major concern for increased risk of adverse health condition outcomes later in life. Specifically, previous studies have reported that multicultural adolescents experience more depressive symptoms than non-multicultural ones. Using the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey, this study examined the relationships between ego-resilience, social support, and depression among multicultural adolescents in South Korea, as well as the moderating effect of social support on the association between ego-resilience and depression.

DESIGN AND METHODS

A total of 1500 multicultural adolescents were included in the analyses, where generalized estimating equation models were employed.

RESULTS

Depression scores increased slightly from 2012 to 2015. Higher levels of ego-resilience, family support, and friend support were associated with lower levels of depression, while teacher support was not a significant predictor. The moderating effect of friends and family support on the association between ego-resilience and depression was not statistically significant.

CONCLUSIONS

To reduce the level of depression among multicultural adolescents, future research should develop interventions that enhance ego-resilience ability, as well as necessary social systems that strengthen family and friend support.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Supportive interventions, such as enhancing ego-resilience to reduce depression should be provided to multicultural adolescents. It is recommended to include family and friends to develop effective intervention programs for multicultural adolescents who are suffering from depression.

Suicide attempt and violence victimization in Korean adolescents with migrant parents: A nationwide study

BACKGROUND

Suicide and violence exposure are important health related issues in adolescents. This study aimed to investigate suicide attempt and violence victimization in Korean adolescents with migrant parents.

METHODS

Data from the 2016 to 2018 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS) were used. The migration status of the participating students' parents was defined based on parental birthplace, classified into the 'both native Korean parents,' 'mother born abroad,' 'father born abroad,' and 'both parents born abroad' groups. Suicide attempt and violence victimization included events that occurred in the past 12 months. The general characteristics of the population were investigated using chi-square test. The association between dependent and independent variables was examined using multiple logistic regression analysis, expressed as Odds Ratio (OR) and their 95 percent confidence interval (95% CI).

RESULTS

Of the 170,575 study participants, 4,012 (2.4%) attempted suicide and 3,038 (1.8%) experienced violence victimization. Highest proportions of suicide attempt and violence victimization were found in adolescents with both migrated parents born abroad. Compared to adolescents with both native Korean parents, individuals with both migrated parents were more likely to attempt suicide (OR 2.28, 95% CI 1.37-3.81) and experience violence victimization (OR 5.63, 95% CI 3.73-8.48).

LIMITATIONS

This study was cross-sectional in design. Information was unavailable on which immigrant generation the study participants belonged to.

CONCLUSION

Adolescents with both migrated parents were more likely to attempt suicide and experience violence victimization. The findings have important implications in the management of suicide and violence victimization in adolescents.

Social Determinants of Health and Well-Being of Adolescents in Multicultural Families in South Korea: Social-Cultural and Community Influence

Objectives: Adolescents in multicultural families (AMFs) are exposed to numerous stressors and face environmental vulnerability within the family, school, and community systems, which may affect their health and well-being. Concrete discussion on policies is lacking due to insufficient data on the levels of well-being of AMFs in South Korea. This study aimed to investigate social-cultural and community factors affecting their well-being. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a convenience sample of 206 AMFs (aged 13-18 years) from 16 general schools and three multicultural schools across eight large cities. AMFs completed a self-administrative questionnaire assessing well-being, individual factors (acculturative stress, health behavior), social and community factors (social support, sense of community), and environmental factors (school type, economic status). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results: Social support and sense of community significantly and directly affected well-being. The economic status and type of school had an indirect effect on well-being, whereas the effect of acculturative stress was not significant. Factors significantly affecting adolescents' well-being were social support, sense of community, economic status, and type of school. Conclusion: Addressing well-being may be the strategy leading AMFs to grow into healthy adults. These results could help educators, health professionals, and policymakers to identify ways to enhance the well-being of AMFs.

The Mental Health of Ethnic Minority Youths in South Korea and Its Related Environmental Factors: A Literature Review

Objectives:

With increasing concerns for the rapidly growing minority population in South Korea, this literature review addressed a range of mental health risks among multiethnic youths (MY) in South Korea by 1) comparing mental health outcomes with those of native-born youths and 2) identifying multiple layers of relevant environmental factors, from family and school relationships to culture.

Methods:

We reviewed 54 studies that fulfilled specific inclusion criteria.

Results:

Multiple common risk/protective factors, including family separation, family relationship quality, parental socioeconomic and mental health status, social relationships at school, and cultural acceptance, were noted.

Conclusion:

In general, empirical evidence indicates that minority youths have relatively heightened risks for emotional and behavioral problems. Future studies must elucidate the complex interplay between multiple risk and protective factors and the long-term adaptation and mental health service utilization of MY.

Health risk behaviors and psychological problems among South Korean, North Korean, and other multicultural family adolescents (2011-2016)

This study was aimed to investigate the health risk behaviors and psychological problems among North Korean, other multicultural, and South Korean family adolescents. The data were collected from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior web-based survey (2011-2016) data set. A total of 17,195 adolescents (mean age 14.65 ± 0.01 years) were analyzed to compare health risk behaviors and psychological problems among the three groups. Concerning risk behaviors, multicultural family adolescents showed a higher rate of alcohol use, smoking, drug use and sexual relations compared to South Korean family adolescents. Moreover, North Korean family adolescents were more likely to experience those risk behaviors than other multicultural family adolescents. Concerning psychological problems, multicultural family youth displayed more depressed mood, and more suicidal ideation, planning, and attempts when compared with South Korean family youth. Among multicultural families, North Korean family adolescents were more depressed and showed higher suicidality. School-based education and preventive interventions are necessary to manage risk behaviors and psychological difficulties of adolescents in North Korean and other multicultural families.