The Mental Health of Ethnic Minority Youths in South Korea and Its Related Environmental Factors: A Literature Review

Abstract

Objectives: With increasing concerns for the rapidly growing minority population in South Korea, this literature review addressed a range of mental health risks among multiethnic youths (MY) in South Korea by 1) comparing mental health outcomes with those of native-born youths and 2) identifying multiple layers of relevant environmental factors, from family and school relationships to culture. Methods: We reviewed 54 studies that fulfilled specific inclusion criteria. Results: Multiple common risk/protective factors, including family separation, family relationship quality, parental socioeconomic and mental health status, social relationships at school, and cultural acceptance, were noted. Conclusion: In general, empirical evidence indicates that minority youths have relatively heightened risks for emotional and behavioral problems. Future studies must elucidate the complex interplay between multiple risk and protective factors and the long-term adaptation and mental health service utilization of MY.

Analyzing Gender Differences in Factors Affecting Depression among Multicultural Adolescents in South Korea: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…This phenomenon is more prominent among adolescents belonging to multicultural families. A literature review reported that 115 Korean adolescents and 795 of those from multicultural families were more likely to engage in delinquency, violence, and game addictions; furthermore, it was revealed that 3995 Korean multicultural adolescents had a higher tendency to engage in substance abuse than monocultural adolescents in South Korea [ 5 ]. Additionally, 881 Mexican adolescents from multicultural families’ experienced higher stress levels, due to internal conflicts over bicultural adjustment and having parents belonging to different nationalities and cultures [ 6 ].…”

Reciprocal relationship between multicultural adolescents’ depression and life satisfaction: a random intercept cross-lagged panel model for 3-wave panel data

“…There is an accumulated evidence showing that MA living in Korea have low life satisfaction and high depression, but there is still a lack of research on how to promote their health. Compared to other native Korean adolescents, MA living in Korea experience psychological problems due to socioeconomic factors (nationality and education level of their parents), family factors (parenting, relationship quality), social factors (discrimination), cultural factors (acculturative stress and bicultural acceptance) (Lee et al, 2019). Most existing studies conducted on MA explain depression and life satisfaction as one point and moving in one direction (Cho & Park, 2020;Zadow et al, 2017).…”

Social Determinants of Health and Well-Being of Adolescents in Multicultural Families in South Korea: Social-Cultural and Community Influence

“…AMFs are likely to face prejudice and discrimination, which are still prevalent in Korean society but an earlier study of Joo et al (42) showed that the perceived support of Chinese Koreans from family and meaningful others decreased the perception of acculturative stress. Therefore, an approach that improves social support from peer, teachers, or family for AMFs will be important in that mental health problems such as depression and anxiety can be triggered when acculturative stress is high (43,44). However, as acculturative stress had a mediating role in the relationship between social support and health outcomes (42), a future study is needed to confirm the mediating effect of acculturative stress on the relationship between social support and well-being in AMFs.…”