Internalizing Symptoms as Mediators of Lifetime Incidence of Trauma and Quality of Life among Out-of-School Youths

Yeon Jung Lee; So Hee Lee; Woori Han; Moon-Soo Lee; Dae Hyun Um; Eun Hee Chung; Jeong Min Eom

doi:10.5765/jkacap.180012

Internalizing Symptoms as Mediators of Lifetime Incidence of Trauma and Quality of Life among Out-of-School Youths

Soa Chongsonyon Chongsin Uihak. 2018 Jul 1;29(3):137-143. doi: 10.5765/jkacap.180012.

Authors

Yeon Jung Lee¹, So Hee Lee², Woori Han², Moon-Soo Lee³, Dae Hyun Um², Eun Hee Chung⁴, Jeong Min Eom⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Soonchunhyang University, Seoul Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
² Department of Psychiatry, National Medicine Center, Seoul, Korea.
³ Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Korea University, Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
⁴ Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea.
⁵ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medicine, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea.

Abstract

Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the relationships among the lifetime incidence of trauma, internalizing symptoms, and quality of life (QoL) in out-of-school youths (OSYs).

Methods: We recruited 50 OSYs in South Korea. Participants completed the following surveys: completed Lifetime Incidence of Traumatic Events for children, Youth Self Report, and The KIDSCREEN-27 QoL measure for children and adolescents. Mediation analysis was conducted to test the research hypotheses.

Results: The mean lifetime incidence of traumatic events among OSYs was 3.27 (standard deviation, 2.41). Internalizing symptoms significantly mediated the lifetime incidence of trauma and QoL. OSYs with fewer internalizing symptoms exhibited a better QoL in the domain of psychological well-being, although their lifetime incidence of trauma was higher.

Conclusion: The results of current study suggest that assessment and therapeutic intervention with regard to internalizing symptoms are needed to increase the QoL of OSYs.

Keywords: Adolescent; Anxiety; Depression; Quality of life; School dropout.