Mental health among children relocating to temporary housing following the Fukushima nuclear accident

Abstract

Mental health among children relocating to temporary housing following the Fukushima nuclear accidentMasae Miura (Tokyo Kasei University) , Ayaka Miura (Yoyogi Hospital) , and Takahiro Okayasu (Meiji University)This study compared the psychological health of children who moved to temporary housing following the Fukushima nuclear accident with those who stayed in their own houses. The questionnaire was designed to measure stress responses, positive events in daily life, positive affect, and social support. It was completed by 28 children who had evacuated from the affected area and lived in temporary housing; 106 children living in their own houses in Fukushima Prefecture; and 321 children living in a nonaffected area in Saitama Prefecture. The results showed that children who moved to temporary housing experienced more frequent bullying and play-related stressors, had less positive experiences related to events with family members and during lessons, and received less support from their teachers and friends than other children. However, the differences in living environments did not affect their stress responses or positive affect. These findings suggest the importance of providing temporary housing environments that enable children to experience close interactions with friends and adequate support from teachers.

Parental Recognition of Bullying and Associated Factors Among Children After the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster: A 3-Year Follow-Up Study From the Fukushima Health Management Survey

“…A 3-year follow-up study of people who were evacuated from Fukushima Prefecture reported that the causes of stressors changed from the damage of the earthquake itself to the circumstances of living in shelters over time (20). A small-scale study showed that 28 children who were evacuated from the affected area of the FDNPP accident and lived in temporary housing in the nonaffected area of the Fukushima Prefecture experienced more frequent bullying than 106 children living in their own houses in Fukushima Prefecture and 321 children living in a nonaffected area in the Saitama Prefecture (21). The authors suggested that changes in friendship and the limitation of playground space may have influenced the results.…”

Mental health consequences for survivors of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster: a systematic review. Part 1: psychological consequences

“…21 For non-FHMS studies (n = 46; 60.5%), a large number of the studies used convenience samples and focused on evacuees (living in and out of the Fukushima prefecture), children, and older adults. Other study populations focused on specific populations, such as hospital patients, 15,23,45,47,54,85,86 caregivers, 19,71 students, 16,30,33,42,[48][49][50]62 and workers of various occupations. Specifically, a series of studies were conducted among the NPP workers.…”

“…About two-thirds of the examined papers (n = 51; 64.6%) were written in English whereas 28 (35.4%) were written in Japanese. 15,18,25,26,29,35,[47][48][49][50]51,54,56,62,63,[66][67][68]70,72,77,81,84,86,88,91,92 Most studies (57; 75.0%) had a single-wave, cross-sectional design. A small portion of the studies had multiple waves of cross-sectional design (n = 15; 19.0%) 15,20,23,27,28,34,35,52,55,[58][59][60][61]87,88 ; among them, three studies (3.8%) conducted a trajectory analysis.…”

“…40,46,78,89 Control groups were used in 13 studies (16.5%). 16,17,26,30,41,42,48,50,55,62,64,70,71 Most of the studies were based on responses from selfadministered questionnaires (68; 89.4%). Seven studies (9.2%) used medical records retrospectively for their data.…”

“…These rates tended to be higher in control groups that were unaffected by the nuclear disaster. 17,42,48,55,70,71 Only a single study performed a diagnostic interview to measure the prevalence of mental disorders; among the 168 local government workers, the rates for depression and PTSD were 17.9% and 4.8%, respectively. 43 Nishi et al used the government provided statistical data to measure the PD of the residents of the Fukushima prefecture in comparison to the rest of Japan, before and after the disaster.…”