Impact of the Coronavirus Disease Pandemic on Mental Health Among School Students in Korea During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• Published in: Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Vol. 34; no. 2; pp. 63 - 68
• Main Authors: Jang, Youngsoo, Cho, Hye-mi, Mok, Young-Eun, Chi, Su-hyuk, Han, Changsu, Yi, Hyun-suk, Lee, Moon-Soo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) 대한소아청소년정신의학회 01.04.2023; Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; 대한소아청소년 정신의학회
• Subjects: Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Mental depression; Post traumatic stress disorder; Special; Students; 정신과학; COVID-19; School mental health; Children and adolescents
• ISSN: 1225-729X; 2233-9183; 2233-9183
• DOI: 10.5765/jkacap.220036

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had various effects on mankind, especially children and adolescents. Because children and adolescents spend a lot of time at school, COVID-19 has had a great impact on school mental health. In this study, we investigated the effect of prolonged COVID-19 on school mental health. We prepared self-report questionnaires for depression (Children's Depression Inventory, CDI), anxiety (Korean version of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire for Children; Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, GAD-7), and post-traumatic stress (Primary Care Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, PC-PTSD) for administering to students aged between 7 and 18 years, recruited by a COVID-19 psychological prevention support group in the Gwangmyeong Mental Health Welfare Center for 2 years, in 2020 and 2021. For children aged 7-12 years, there was no significant difference between the years 2020 and 2021 in the assessment of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. Conversely, for adolescents aged 13-18 years, there was a significant increase in the scale scores (CDI, PC-PTSD, and GAD-7). Prolonged COVID-19 might have had a significant impact on the mental health of adolescents who spent a lot of time at school. When comparing the years 2020 and 2021, middle and high school students were more affected by COVID-19 than elementary school students.