School Ijime (Bullying) Experience Is a Possible Risk Factor for Current Psychological Distress among Science City Workers: A Cross-Sectional Study in Tsukuba, Japan.

Early-life adversities are considered to have long-term impact on health. There have been many studies regarding the experience of being bullied and its harmful psychological influence, but such influence on workers remains to be investigated in Japan. We therefore aimed to examine the prevalence of workers with experiences of being bullied or bullying others during childhood and adolescence and to clarify the relation between those experiences and current psychological distress. A cross-sectional study using an anonymous self-report web questionnaire was conducted in November 2017. The study population was 19,481 workers belonging to the Tsukuba Science City Network, and we analyzed the data of 6,015 participants (3,715 men and 2,300 women, aged between 20 years and 59 years). The percentages of participants with experiences of being bullied were 51.5% for men and 56.2% for women; those with experiences of bullying others were 36.5% of men and 29.4% of women. Relations between experiences of bullying and psychological distress were assessed using Chi-squared tests. Logistic regression analyses with psychological distress as an objective variable and experiences of bulling as explanatory variables were performed using those who had no bulling experiences as control. In both men and women, experiences of being bullied were significantly associated with psychological distress after adjustment socioeconomic factors (the odds ratios were 1.26 for men (95% CI = 1.05-1.52) and 1.72 for women (95% CI = 1.39-2.13)). Consideration of past social experiences, such as being bullied, is useful for mental health management among workers reporting psychological distress.

Association between flourishing mental health and occupational stress among workers of Tsukuba Science City, Japan: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Flourishing, defined as the coexistence of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being, is the most favorable end of the mental health spectrum. A growing body of evidence has demonstrated the association between flourishing mental health and favorable work-related outcomes. However, epidemiology of flourishing mental health is scarce in Japan. Moreover, the relationship between flourishing mental health and occupational stress has not been elaborated. Therefore, the aim of this study was to elucidate (1) the prevalence of flourishing mental health and (2) the association between flourishing mental health and occupational stress among Japanese workers. METHODS: The present survey was conducted in from February to March 2017 via an anonymous, self-administered, and web-based questionnaire among workers in Tsukuba Science City, Japan. Mental Health Continuum Short Form was used to assess flourishing mental health. We performed binomial logistic regression analyses to calculate the adjusted odds ratios (AOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of occupational stress for flourishing mental health, controlling for sociodemographic factors. RESULTS: A total of 7012 respondents (4402 men, 2610 women) were analyzed. The overall prevalence of flourishing mental health among the respondents was 12.4%. Full-time (permanent) workers were less likely to be flourishing. Reward from work (AOR = 2.34, 95% CI = 2.04-2.68), support from colleagues and superiors (AOR = 1.67, 95% CI = 1.44-1.94), and workload (AOR = 1.19, 95% CI = 1.05-1.36) were positively associated with flourishing mental health, whereas mental workload (AOR = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.57-0.75) was inversely associated with flourishing mental health. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the present study shed light on the association between flourishing mental health and occupational stress.

Non-Regular Employment Status Is Associated with Psychological Distress among Young Researchers: A Cross-Sectional Study in Tsukuba, Japan.

Non-regular employment is increasing and its mental health impact is a globally important problem. In Japan, non-regularly employed researchers are increasing, especially within young age groups, because employment quotas were not sufficiently expanded against rapid increasing number of doctorate holders. It is therefore important to understand the relationship between non-regular employment and mental health. The significance of our research is to contribute to the improvement of researchers' mental health by clarifying the influence of employment status on psychological distress. We conducted a cross-sectional, web-based survey in 2017 via an anonymous, self-administered questionnaire distributed to workers in Tsukuba Science City, Japan. The survey questionnaire items included employment status, psychological distress, occupational stress, sex, age, and income. We analyzed 2,762 valid responses in two categories (1,850 regular employment, 912 non-regular employment) and two subcategories based on age according to the definition of "young researcher" by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (20-39 years vs. 40-59 years). Psychological distress was defined as a total K6 score of 5 or greater. Binomial logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for psychological distress. Non-regular employment was significantly associated with psychological distress in the age 20-39 group but not in the age 40-59 group. At the age 20-39 group, a negative association was shown between psychological distress and reward from work (i.e., pride in their job, ability utilization, and sense of accomplishment). Support to increase psychological work rewards may be important in reducing psychological distress for young non-regularly employed researchers.

Relationship between suicidal ideation and family problems among young callers to the Japanese crisis hotline.

Previous studies have reported an association between family relationships and suicidal behavior, and found that people with high suicidal ideation are not likely to consult with others about their distress. An effective consulting service is therefore necessary for such individuals. Crisis hotlines are effective for reducing suicide risk, but their associated suicide ideation rate and odds ratio of family problems children remain unclear. The present study investigated the suicidal ideation rate and odds ratio of callers under 20 years of age (N = 24,333) with family problems to the Japanese crisis hotline in 2012. There were 5,242 (21.5%), 18,061 (74.2%), and 1,030 (4.2%) calls related to family problems, other problems, and both, respectively. The suicidal ideation rate and odds ratio of callers with family problems were 2.2% and 0.426, respectively. This result suggested that callers with family problems have a significantly lower rate and odds ratio for suicidal ideation compared with others. However, some associations with a high suicide ideation rate were found for individual items among callers with family problems such as abuse (20.4%), family breakdown (16.1%), and domestic violence (10.6%). Further studies are needed to understand the suicidal ideation of callers with family problems and develop more effective preventive strategies.

Relationship between workplace social capital and suicidal ideation in the past year among employees in Japan: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: A growing body of evidence has demonstrated the associations between social capital and health. In residential or geographical areas, social capital has attracted attention for its protective effects against suicide. However, to this date, the relationship between social capital and suicidal ideation is not fully elaborated in the occupational setting. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine the association between workplace social capital and suicidal ideation in the past year among employees in Japan. METHODS: A cross-sectional, web-based survey was conducted in February/March 2017 via an anonymous self-administered questionnaire distributed to workers in Tsukuba Science City, Japan. Binomial logistic regressions were used to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for suicidal ideation in the past year, controlling for age group, marital status, educational attainment, and annual household income. The results were shown stratified by sex and occupation. RESULTS: In total, 7255 of 19,481 workers responded, out of which we could analyze 6325 responses (4030 men, 2295 women). The prevalence of suicidal ideation in the past year was 5.9% for men and 7.8% for women. Low workplace social capital was statistically significantly associated with suicidal ideation both for men (OR = 2.57, 95% CI = 1.72-3.83) and for women (OR = 1.75, 95% CI = 1.15-2.66), compared with high workplace social capital after controlling for socioeconomic factors. CONCLUSION: Higher workplace social capital was associated with a reduced risk of suicidal ideation in the past year. Promoting workplace social capital could contribute to preventing suicide among employees in Japan.

Parental bonding during childhood affects stress-coping ability and stress reaction.

An online survey examined the effects of parental bonding during childhood on adult workers' stress-coping ability (Sense of Coherence) and stress reactions (General Health Questionnaire and Self-Rating Depression Scale). Participants who completed the questionnaire were grouped into optimal bonding and poor bonding groups. Analyses of covariance by gender with age as a covariate were conducted for the Sense of Coherence, General Health Questionnaire, and Self-Rating Depression Scale scores for 9525 participants. For both genders, the scores of the poor bonding group were significantly lower for the Sense of Coherence and significantly higher for the General Health Questionnaire and Self-Rating Depression Scale compared to those of the optimal bonding group.

Characteristics of Telephone Crisis Hotline Callers with Suicidal Ideation in Japan.

Hotline callers do not always have suicidal ideation and previous studies have noted that the rate of such callers is limited. Crisis hotline counselors must be able to identify high-risk callers in order to provide appropriate support. This study investigated the characteristics of Japanese crisis hotline callers in 2012 (N = 541,694) and is the first to analyze crisis hotline data for all parts of Japan over 1 year. About 14% of the callers had suicidal ideation and 6% had a history of attempted suicide. The odds ratio for suicidal ideation among those with a history of attempted suicide was 15.5. The suicidal ideation rate was much smaller compared to previous studies in other countries. There is a psychological barrier that must be broken for high-risk people to use support hotlines. In addition, attempted suicide is a strong exclusive predisposing factor for death due to suicide; therefore, counselors should pay careful attention to callers with a history of attempted suicide. The characteristics of Japanese crisis hotline callers and the features of suicidal ideation revealed in the present study are expected to be useful in developing telephone crisis hotline strategies.