Citation

Um MY, Rice E, Lee JO, Kim HJ, Palinkas LA. Transcult. Psychiatry 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, McGill University, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1363461520935314

PMID

32691690

Abstract

Rates of death by suicide among North Korean refugees are three times higher than those among their host-country counterparts in South Korea. However, social and cultural factors predicting suicidality among North Korean refugees are not well known. Thus, we explored how social networks affect suicidal ideation in a sample of 405 North Korean refugees in South Korea using egocentric network data. Network diversity (number of different types of ties) was a protective factor for suicidal ideation among women. Having a help-providing and trustworthy church-based tie was a protective factor for women, whereas it was a risk factor for men. It is likely that women connected to people in diverse social contexts received more support to effectively deal with adversities. Because South Korean churches provide tailored worship services and financial aid to North Korean refugees, women might receive emotional comfort from church-based ties whom they can trust and receive help from, whereas men might become distressed about being financially dependent on others, which contradicts cultural expectations of a man's traditional role. Our findings have implications for mental health practitioners serving vulnerable populations, and highlight the importance of understanding the cultural context of social networks and gender in suicide research.

Language: en

Keywords

gender; social network analysis; South Korea; suicidal ideation; North Korean refugees