Junko Okuyama1,2,3,4, Shunichi Funakoshi3,4, Hiroaki Tomita1, Takuhiro Yamaguchi5, Hiroo Matsuoka2. 1. Department of Disaster Psychiatry, International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan. 2. Department of Psychiatry, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan. 3. Medical Care Bureau, Miyagi Psychiatric Center, Natori, Japan. 4. Department of Community Psychiatric Medicine, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Natori, Japan. 5. Division of Public Health and Forensic Medicine, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
Abstract
AIM: Resilience, the ability to cope with disasters and significant life adversity, is an important factor to consider when studying the mental health of populations affected by a disaster. Although high school students in a community affected by a disaster should have specific characteristics of resilience, little has been reported on the issue. This study was designed to provide initial data regarding characteristics of the resilience of high school students affected by a catastrophe. METHODS: A total of 760 high school students in Natori City, which was devastated by the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, were profiled, and a 3-year longitudinal study was conducted with 254 students who had entered the school in 2012. Resilience was evaluated with the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. The Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Japanese version, the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, and the Impact of Event Scale-Revised were also administered to assess the students' mental health. RESULTS: Among the students who entered the high school in 2012, 28.6% showed high resilience, and the proportion increased to 42.9% in 2013 and 46.6% in 2014. The Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Japanese version and Impact of Event Scale-Revised scores decreased significantly over the 3-year study period, but there were no significant differences in the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale scores over time. CONCLUSION: This initial study profiling the characteristics of resilience among adolescents suggests that resilience is a highly changeable component of mental health among people who have faced adversity. Resilience can be a useful indicator of recovery from adversity and a target of interventions for improving mental health conditions.
AIM: Resilience, the ability to cope with disasters and significant life adversity, is an important factor to consider when studying the mental health of populations affected by a disaster. Although high school students in a community affected by a disaster should have specific characteristics of resilience, little has been reported on the issue. This study was designed to provide initial data regarding characteristics of the resilience of high school students affected by a catastrophe. METHODS: A total of 760 high school students in Natori City, which was devastated by the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, were profiled, and a 3-year longitudinal study was conducted with 254 students who had entered the school in 2012. Resilience was evaluated with the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. The Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Japanese version, the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, and the Impact of Event Scale-Revised were also administered to assess the students' mental health. RESULTS: Among the students who entered the high school in 2012, 28.6% showed high resilience, and the proportion increased to 42.9% in 2013 and 46.6% in 2014. The Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Japanese version and Impact of Event Scale-Revised scores decreased significantly over the 3-year study period, but there were no significant differences in the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale scores over time. CONCLUSION: This initial study profiling the characteristics of resilience among adolescents suggests that resilience is a highly changeable component of mental health among people who have faced adversity. Resilience can be a useful indicator of recovery from adversity and a target of interventions for improving mental health conditions.
Authors: Ayako Ide-Okochi; Tomonori Samiso; Yumie Kanamori; Mu He; Mika Sakaguchi; Kazumi Fujimura Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-04-06 Impact factor: 3.390