Examining the hikikomori syndrome in a French sample of hospitalized adolescents with severe social withdrawal and school refusal behavior

Datos Bibliográficos

ID2395500
AutoresXavier Benarous (0000-0003-1994-5779, Inserm, autor de correspondencia), Marie-Jeanne Guedj (Centre Hospitalier Sainte-Anne), Cora Cravero (0000-0002-8345-079X, Sorbonne Université), Barbara Jakubowicz (Sorbonne Université), Julie Brunelle (Sorbonne Université), Kunifumi Suzuki (Nagoya University), David Cohen (0000-0002-4970-0804, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Sorbonne University, Paris, France)
Año2022
Volumen59
Número6
Páginas831-843
Fecha de publicación2022-12-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaTranscultural Psychiatric Research Review (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0041-1108 • E-ISSN: 0315-4386
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/13634615221111633
PMID35866212
OpenAlexW4286717654
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas8
Referencias citadas30

While the term hikikomori (HKM) has spread internationally to describe a chronic and severe form of social withdrawal, its place in current nosography and its transposition into non-Asian cultures are still debated. A retrospective chart review was conducted to determine the rate and the clinical profiles of HKM among a French sample of adolescent inpatients. Data were obtained from 191 adolescents aged 12-18 years ( M = 15.0, 44% boys) consecutively admitted in two inpatient units from January 2017 to December 2019. Using a retrospective diagnosis of HKM based on Teo and Gaw's criteria, we compared socio-demographic characteristics, clinical features, and treatment outcomes between HKM patients and those with other forms of social withdrawal and/or school refusal (SW/SR). At admission, 7% of participants met HKM criteria ( n = 14, M = 14.3, 64% boys), one out of six adolescents with SW/SR. Among those with SW/SR, HKM + vs. HKM- participants had higher rates of anxiety disorder (Odd Ratio, OR = 35.2) and lower disruptive behavioral disorder ( OR = 0.03). A minority of the participants with anxiety and depressive disorders met the HKM criteria (respectively, 15% and 9%), but those with HKM had a longer duration of symptoms, longer hospitalization, and required more daily care facilities at discharge compared to HKM-. While HKM syndrome could not be delimitated from anxiety disorder, it was associated with specific clinical features and treatment outcomes. The clinical characteristics observed were consistent with the features reported in Asian HKM adults, supporting face validity of this clinical concept in adolescent inpatients with different cultural contexts

Anxiety · Psychiatry · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Clinical Psychology · Medicine · Parental Involvement in Education · Psychology · Youth Substance Use and School Attendance