Psychopathological Characteristics of Social Withdrawal (Hikikomori) in the Korean Adolescent

Yoon Ji Lee; Min Jae Seo; Tae Young Choi

doi:10.4306/jknpa.2015.54.4.549

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Lee, Seo, and Choi: Psychopathological Characteristics of Social Withdrawal (Hikikomori) in the Korean Adolescent

Original Article

Journal of Korean Neuropsychiatric Association 2015; 54(4): 549-555.

Published online: 30 November 2015

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4306/jknpa.2015.54.4.549

Psychopathological Characteristics of Social Withdrawal (Hikikomori) in the Korean Adolescent

Yoon Ji Lee, MD¹, Min Jae Seo, MD^1,², Tae Young Choi, MD, PhD^1,²

¹Department of Psychiatry, Daegu Catholic University Medical Center, Daegu, Korea.

²Department of Psychiatry, Catholic University of Daegu School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea.

Address for correspondence: Tae Young Choi, MD, PhD. Department of Psychiatry, Catholic University of Daegu School of Medicine, 33 Duryugongwon-ro 17-gil, Nam-gu, Daegu 42472, Korea. Tel +82-53-650-4786, Fax +82-53-650-7507, tyoungchoi@cu.ac.kr

Received 13 July 2015 Revised 25 July 2015 Accepted 11 August 2015

Abstract

Objectives

The aim of this study was to investigate the social withdrawal tendency in Korean adolescents using the Hikikomori Behavior Checklist and to compare the psychopathological differences between the high risk group of social withdrawal (HRSW) and the low risk group of social withdrawal (LRSW).

Methods

Participants included 300 high school students from Daegu, Korea. Each participant completed several questionnaires including the demographic questionnaire, Korean-Version of the Hikikomori Behavior Checklist (K-HBCL), the Parental Screening Questionnaire for Hidden Youth (HYQ), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Anxiety Sensitivity Inventory (ASI), Social Avoidance and Distress scale (SAD), the Scale for Fear of Negative Evaluation (FNE), and Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory (MOCI). The subjects were divided into two groups, the HRSW and LRSW, depending on the mean value of their total HBCL score, and their BDI, ASI, SAD, FNE, and MOCI scores were compared between HRSW and LRSW.

Results

The scales affecting the high-risk group were BDI, ASI, and SAD. The total score of K-HBCL showed positive correlation with the total score of BDI, ASI, SAD, FNE, and MOCI.

Conclusion

The socially withdrawn adolescents had more problematic issues of their psychopathology. Several emotional factors would be useful in assessing the high-risk group of socially withdrawn adolescents.

Keywords: Adolescent, Psychopathology, Hikikomori, Social withdrawal

Figures and Tables

Table 1

Demographic characteristics of HRSW and LRSW

n : Number, SD : Standard deviation, HRSW : High risk group of social withdrawal, LRSW : Low risk group of social withdrawal

Table 2

Comparisons of subjects and scales between HRSW and LRSW

SD : Standard deviation, n : Number, HRSW : High risk group of social withdrawal, LRSW : Low risk group of social withdrawal, HYQ : Parental Screening Questionnaire for Hidden Youth, BDI : Beck Depression Inventory, ASI : Anxiety Sensitivity Inventory, SAD : Social Avoidance and Distress Scale, FNE : Fear of Negative Evaluation, MOCI : Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory

Table 3

Comparisons of scales between male and female

HRSW : High risk group of social withdrawal, LRSW : Low risk group of social withdrawal, HYQ : Parental Screening Questionnaire for Hidden Youth, BDI : Beck Depression Inventory, ASI : Anxiety Sensitivity Inventory, SAD : Social Avoidance and Distress Scale, FNE : Fear of Negative Evaluation, MOCI : Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory, SD : Standard deviation, n : Number

Table 4

Logistic regression results of predicting a severity of social withdrawal

^* : Significance of Wald statistic at 0.05 criterion, ^† : Significance at 0.001 criterion. BDI : Beck Depression Inventory, ASI : Anxiety Sensitivity Inventory, SAD : Social Avoidance and Distress Scale, FNE : Fear of Negative Evaluation, MOCI : Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory, SE : Standard error, OR : Odds ratio, CI : Confidence interval

Notes

^{Conflicts of Interest} The authors have no financial conflicts of interest.

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