Using difficulty in going out and social participation to assess for risk of hikikomori: nationally representative data from the European health interview survey.
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| Titel: | Using difficulty in going out and social participation to assess for risk of hikikomori: nationally representative data from the European health interview survey. |
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| Autoren: | Amendola S; Cosenza, Italy. amend.sim@gmail.com., Teo AR; Center to Improve Veteran Involvement in Care, VA Portland Health Care System, Portland, OR, USA.; Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA. |
| Quelle: | Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology [Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol] 2025 Dec; Vol. 60 (12), pp. 2871-2885. Date of Electronic Publication: 2025 Jun 11. |
| Publikationsart: | Journal Article |
| Sprache: | English |
| Info zur Zeitschrift: | Publisher: Springer International Country of Publication: Germany NLM ID: 8804358 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1433-9285 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 09337954 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: [Berlin] : Springer International, [c1988- |
| MeSH-Schlagworte: | Social Participation*/psychology , Social Isolation*/psychology, Humans ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Male ; Female ; Aged ; Health Surveys ; Adolescent ; Young Adult ; Prevalence ; Health Status ; Italy/epidemiology ; Risk Assessment ; Risk Factors |
| Abstract: | Competing Interests: Declarations. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process: No generative AI technology was used to write this manuscript. Purpose: Epidemiologic studies of hikikomori, a form of prolonged social withdrawal, are limited. This study aimed to look for indicators in a European country of a problem first detected in Japan, estimating the prevalence of hikikomori risk and examining the relationship between hikikomori risk and sociodemographic factors, health status, and health services use. Methods: Data from the European Health Interview Survey collected in 2019 were used, consisting of a nationally representative sample (unweighted N = 45,962; weighted N = 52,012,922.578) of persons aged 15-75 years and over in Italy. Difficulty in going out not due to medical illnesses/functional limitations or chronic illnesses was considered a proxy condition for hikikomori, i.e., hikikomori risk. Hikikomori risk was further differentiated based on difficulty in social participation. Results: The overall prevalence of hikikomori risk was 1.7% (95%CI: 1.6-1.9) corresponding to a weighted count of 866,743 persons. This was comprised of a 0.7% prevalence of hikikomori risk with no difficulty in social participation (95%CI: 0.6-0.8%; weighted n = 343,920), 0.9% prevalence of hikikomori with difficulty in social participation (95%CI: 0.8-1.0%; weighted n = 445,165) and 0.1% prevalence of hikikomori risk with no interest for social participation (95%CI: 0.1-0.2%; weighted n = 77,657). Low vitality and mental health index, low social support, high depressive symptoms, and difficulty accessing mental health services were significantly associated with hikikomori risk. Conclusion: The prevalence of individuals at risk for hikikomori is on par with many psychiatric disorders. Given the prevalence and functional impairment faced by individuals at risk for hikikomori, they represent a group worthy of the attention of public health experts and other stakeholders in the health arena and beyond. (© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany.) |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Hikikomori; Isolation; Social avoidance; Social participation; Social withdrawal |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20250611 Date Completed: 20251107 Latest Revision: 20251107 |
| Update Code: | 20251107 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s00127-025-02938-9 |
| PMID: | 40500311 |
| Datenbank: | MEDLINE |
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Nájsť tento článok vo Web of Science | Abstract: | Competing Interests: Declarations. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process: No generative AI technology was used to write this manuscript.<br />Purpose: Epidemiologic studies of hikikomori, a form of prolonged social withdrawal, are limited. This study aimed to look for indicators in a European country of a problem first detected in Japan, estimating the prevalence of hikikomori risk and examining the relationship between hikikomori risk and sociodemographic factors, health status, and health services use.<br />Methods: Data from the European Health Interview Survey collected in 2019 were used, consisting of a nationally representative sample (unweighted N = 45,962; weighted N = 52,012,922.578) of persons aged 15-75 years and over in Italy. Difficulty in going out not due to medical illnesses/functional limitations or chronic illnesses was considered a proxy condition for hikikomori, i.e., hikikomori risk. Hikikomori risk was further differentiated based on difficulty in social participation.<br />Results: The overall prevalence of hikikomori risk was 1.7% (95%CI: 1.6-1.9) corresponding to a weighted count of 866,743 persons. This was comprised of a 0.7% prevalence of hikikomori risk with no difficulty in social participation (95%CI: 0.6-0.8%; weighted n = 343,920), 0.9% prevalence of hikikomori with difficulty in social participation (95%CI: 0.8-1.0%; weighted n = 445,165) and 0.1% prevalence of hikikomori risk with no interest for social participation (95%CI: 0.1-0.2%; weighted n = 77,657). Low vitality and mental health index, low social support, high depressive symptoms, and difficulty accessing mental health services were significantly associated with hikikomori risk.<br />Conclusion: The prevalence of individuals at risk for hikikomori is on par with many psychiatric disorders. Given the prevalence and functional impairment faced by individuals at risk for hikikomori, they represent a group worthy of the attention of public health experts and other stakeholders in the health arena and beyond.<br /> (© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany.) |
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| ISSN: | 1433-9285 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s00127-025-02938-9 |