Support from superiors reduces depression in Republic of Korea military officers

Background: The prevalence of depression is relatively high in the Korean military. Social support is a protective factor against depression and is classified into four categories: emotional support-having the sense of feeling loved; instrumental support-receiving material assistance; informational support-receiving advice; appraisal support-feeling valued and respected for one's abilities.

Objective: To investigate the effect of support from one's superior on depression among Republic of Korea (ROK) military officers.

Methods: 2047 participants from the 2015 Military Health Survey were included in the study. The Korean version of the Beck Depression Inventory was used to measure depression, and a self-reported questionnaire was used to assess support from one's superior. A chi-squared test and multiple logistic regression were used to analyse the data.

Results: Of the 2047 participants, 177 (8.6%) had depression. Military officers who did not receive support from their superior were more likely to have depression than than those who did receive support (OR=2.09, 95% CI 1.30 to 3.36). Additionally, military personnel who did not receive emotional or appraisal support were more likely to have depression (emotional support: OR=2.37, 95% CI 1.31 to 4.29; appraisal support: OR=1.56, 95% CI 1.48 to 2.75).

Conclusions: Our study found that depression in military officers was associated with lack of support from superiors. In particular, emotional support and appraisal support had a statistically significant effect. Therefore, we suggest that the ROK armed forces consider early intervention and management for high-risk groups. A social support programme and organisational atmosphere are also needed to improve supportive ability and skills of superiors.