A Study on the Health Risk Behaviors of Adolescents from Multicultural Families according to the Parents' Migration Background

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: This study aimed to compare health risk behaviors among adolescents according to whether or not the parents were born in South Korea. METHODS: From the database of the ninth Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS), the researchers classify adolescents into four groups those whose parents were both native Korean, those whose mother only was a native Korean, those whose father only was a native Korean, and those whose parents were both foreign-born. Data were analyzed using chi2-test and multiple logistic regression with the SPSS/WIN 18.0 program. RESULTS: The adolescents with a foreign-born mother were less likely to smoke and drink alcohol than those with native Korean parents, but for other health risk behaviors the two groups were similar to each other. The adolescents with a foreign-born father were at a greater risk of drug use, intercourse, depression and violence at school than those with native Korean parents. The adolescents whose parents were born abroad were at a greater risk of smoking, drug use, intercourse, depression, suicidal ideation and violence at school than those with native Korean parents. CONCLUSION: Health promotion approaches differentiated by the type of multi-cultural family are needed in order to improve multi-cultural adolescents' health.