Sociodemographic Characteristics and Emotional and Behavioral Factors Associated with Perceived Need and Use of Adolescent Mental Health Services in Korea

Nam Hee Kim; Ki Young Lim; Young Ki Chung; Jae Sung Noh; Hyun Soo Kim; Kyung Min Shin; Yun Mi Shin

doi:10.0000/jkna.2012.51.6.409

Journal List > J Korean Neuropsychiatr Assoc > v.51(6) > 1017610

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Kim, Lim, Chung, Noh, Kim, Shin, and Shin: Sociodemographic Characteristics and Emotional and Behavioral Factors Associated with Perceived Need and Use of Adolescent Mental Health Services in Korea

Original Article

Journal of the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association

Journal of the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association 2012; 51(6): 409-415.

Published online: 30 November 2012

DOI: https://doi.org/10.0000/jkna.2012.51.6.409

Sociodemographic Characteristics and Emotional and Behavioral Factors Associated with Perceived Need and Use of Adolescent Mental Health Services in Korea

Nam Hee Kim, MD¹, Ki Young Lim, MD, PhD², Young Ki Chung, MD, PhD², Jae Sung Noh, MD², Hyun Soo Kim, MD³, Kyung Min Shin, MA², Yun Mi Shin, MD²

¹Department of Psychiatry, Seoul Metropolitan Eunpyeong Hospital, Seoul, Korea.

²Department of Psychiatry, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea.

³Department of Psychiatry, Kwandong University College of Medicine, Goyang, Korea.

Address for correspondence: Yun Mi Shin, MD. Department of Psychiatry, Ajou University School of Medicine, 164 Worldcup-ro, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon 443-721, Korea. Tel +82-31-219-5180, Fax +82-31-219-5179, ymshin@ajou.ac.kr

Received 31 May 2012 Revised 19 July 2012 Accepted 9 August 2012

Abstract

Objectives

This study investigated the sociodemographic characteristics and emotional and behavioral factors associated with the perceived need and use of adolescent mental health services in Korea.

Methods

We assessed 1857 middle school students (aged 14-16 years) in the city of Osan, Korea. We administered a self-reported questionnaire, which included sociodemographic data, Youth Self Report (K-YSR), and perceived need and use of mental health services. Multiple regression analyses were performed for identification of predictable sociodemographic characteristics, as well as the emotional and behavioral factors of the perceived need and use of adolescent mental health services.

Results

Overall, 11.6% of the adolescents demonstrated a perceived need for mental health services regarding their emotional or behavioral problems, while 2.1% used mental health services. Discrepancies were observed between the perceived need and use. Most adolescents (81.6%) used mental health services without self-perceived need, and only 3.3% of adolescents with self-perceived need utilized mental health services. The perceived need for mental health services is positively influenced by the adolescent's anxious/depressed and attention problems. Use of them is negatively influenced by the adolescent's withdrawn problems.

Conclusion

Although the perceived need for mental health services is high, only a small proportion of adolescents receive them. There is a discrepancy between the perceived need and use and the factors associated with them are different. In order to increase the actual use of mental health services, it is necessary to concern their internalizing problems, such as anxious/depressed and withdrawn, in addition to externalizing problems.

Keywords: Adolescents, Mental health service, Perceived need, Use

Figures and Tables

Table 1

Sociodemographic characteristics of the adolescents

Table 2

Multivariate logistic regression analyses : adolescent and family characteristics influencing perceive need and utilization adolescent mental health services

^*: p<0.01, ^**: p<0.001. OR : Odds ratio, CI : Confidence interval, K-YSR : Korean-Youth Self Report

Notes

The authors have no financial conflicts of interest.

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