Abstract
North Korean refugees have not only endured traumatic experiences in North Korea and during defection but have also undergone an adaptation process after arrival in South Korea. Their quality of life (QoL) is likely to be affected by these traumatic life events, leading to subsequent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or postmigration adaptation-related stress, which involves a sense of dislocation with the culture, language, and people in South Korea. We investigated which aspects predicted the QoL of refugees from North Korea. Fifty-five participants currently living in South Korea completed a checklist about personal characteristics and traumatic experiences before, during and after migration. Diagnosis and symptom severity of PTSD, depressive mood, anxiety, and QoL were also assessed. A multiple regression analysis was performed to evaluate associations between QoL and other variables of interest. Overall, QoL was associated with previous economic status in North Korea, present occupation in South Korea, difficulty interacting with South Koreans, depressed mood, and state–trait anxiety. Finally, QoL was explained by having difficulty interacting with South Koreans, depressed mood, and state anxiety, with the model accounting for 51.3% of the variance. Our findings suggest that QoL among North Korean refugees in South Korea is influenced by the current level of their anxiety and depressed mood, and post-migration adaptation-related stress resulting from trying to integrate with South Koreans after settlement.
Subject
Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
Cited by
4 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献