Lifetime prevalence, psychiatric comorbidity and demographic correlates of “hikikomori” in a community population in Japan

Importance of regular lifestyle with daytime bright light exposure on circadian rhythm sleep–wake disorders in pervasive developmental disorders

“…They also reported that 0.5% of the community population had at least one child currently experiencing Hikikomori. These results indicate that approximately 232,000 people are currently suffering from the Hikikomori state in Japan [6].…”

“…The phenomenon of Hikikomori is defined as ''a state of social withdrawal for more than 6 months, not going to work or school, except for occasionally going out, but not communicating with people besides family members'' [6]. Koyama et al (2010) conducted a survey from 2002 to 2006 to clarify the lifetime prevalence of Hikikomori and psychiatric comorbidities of Hikikomori among a community population aged 20-49 years old (n = 1660).…”

“…The phenomenon of Hikikomori is defined as ''a state of social withdrawal for more than 6 months, not going to work or school, except for occasionally going out, but not communicating with people besides family members'' [6]. Koyama et al (2010) conducted a survey from 2002 to 2006 to clarify the lifetime prevalence of Hikikomori and psychiatric comorbidities of Hikikomori among a community population aged 20-49 years old (n = 1660). They found that 1.2% of the community population had ever experienced the state of Hikikomori, 54.4% of Hikikomori cases had ever experienced at least one psychiatric disorder, and the onset of the psychiatric disorder preceded the state of Hikikomori in 35% of cases.…”

Hikikomori: experience in Japan and international relevance

“…A community-based survey published in 2010 reported that the prevalence of hikikomori was approximately 1.2% of the Japanese population 2 , and in 2016 a Japanese cabinet report estimated people with hikikomori to be about 541,000 within the age range of 15-39 years. Early epidemiological studies were limited by not being based on strict diagnostic standards.…”

Psychopathology associated with social withdrawal: Idiopathic and comorbid presentations

“…One form of social withdrawal that has been most commonly described in Japan is hikikomori. It is characterized by persistently reclusive behavior and has a lifetime prevalence of 1-2% in East Asian countries (Koyama et al, 2010;Teo and Gaw, 2010;Wong et al, 2014). Substantial debate exists over whether hikikomori is a unique psychiatric condition or a cultural concept of distress that reflects other underlying psychopathology.…”