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

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 CONCLUSION: The socially withdrawn adolescents had more problematic issues of their psychopathology. Several emotional factors would be useful in assessing the high-risk group of socially withdrawn adolescents.