Factors Associated with Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms in Students Who Survived 20 Months after the Sewol Ferry Disaster in Korea

BACKGROUND: The Sewol ferry disaster caused national shock and grief in Korea. The present study examined the prevalence and associated factors of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among the surviving students 20 months after that disaster. METHODS: This study was conducted using a cross-sectional design and a sample of 57 students (29 boys and 28 girls) who survived the Sewol ferry disaster. Data were collected using a questionnaire, including instruments that assessed psychological status. A generalized linear model using a log link and Poisson distribution was performed to identify factors associated with PTSD symptoms. RESULTS: The results showed that 26.3% of participants were classified in the clinical group by the Child Report of Post-traumatic Symptoms score. Based on a generalized linear model, Poisson distribution, and log link analyses, PTSD symptoms were positively correlated with the number of exposed traumatic events, peers and social support, peri-traumatic dissociation and post-traumatic negative beliefs, and emotional difficulties. On the other hand, PTSD symptoms were negatively correlated with psychological well-being, family cohesion, post-traumatic social support, receiving care at a psychiatry clinic, and female gender. CONCLUSION: This study uncovered risk and protective factors of PTSD in disaster-exposed adolescents. The implications of these findings are considered in relation to determining assessment and interventional strategies aimed at helping survivors following similar traumatic experiences.

Factors Associated with Complicated Grief in Students Who Survived the Sewol Ferry Disaster in South Korea

OBJECTIVE: The Sewol ferry disaster caused shock and grief in South Korea. The aim of this study was to identify the factors associated with symptoms of complicated grief (CG) among the surviving students 20 months after that disaster. METHODS: This study was conducted using a cross-sectional design and a sample of 57 students who survived the Sewol ferry disaster. Data were collected using the following instruments: Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG), the Lifetime Incidence of Traumatic Events-Child, the Child Report of Post-Traumatic Symptoms (CROPS), KIDSCREEN-27, Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales-III, the Peri-traumatic Dissociation–Post-traumatic Negative Beliefs–Post-traumatic Social Support scale, and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. A generalized linear model using a log link and Poisson distribution was performed to identify factors associated with symptoms of CG. RESULTS: The mean score on the ICG was 15.57 (standard deviation: 12.72). Being born in 1999, a higher score on the CROPS and a lower score in autonomy and relationship with parents on the KIDSCREEN-27 were related to higher levels of CG. CONCLUSION: Twenty months after the Sewol ferry disaster, 24.5% of surviving students were suffering from CG. This study uncovered a vulnerable population of bereaved children at high risk for CG.