Dataset Information

Long-term psychological recovery process and its associated factors among survivors of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in Japan: a qualitative study.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

The 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake had an enormous negative impact on survivors' health. Many survivors experienced psychological distress and their long-term psychological recovery process remains unclear. Our objective was thus to explore this long-term psychological recovery process.

Design

Qualitative study.

Setting

From January to December 2015, face-to-face interviews were conducted in Kobe, Japan.

Participants

20 affected survivors (55% female; ages ranged from 7 to 60 at the time of the disaster)-10 volunteer storytellers, six first responders (firefighters/public health nurses) and four post-traumatic stress disorder patients.

Outcome measures

We asked participants about their experiences and psychological distress relating to the earthquake and what facilitated or hindered their psychological recovery. We analysed interview data using constructivist grounded theory.

Results

Participants experienced diverse emotional reactions immediately after the disaster and often hyperfocused on what they should do now. This hyperfocused state led to both mental and physical health problems several months after the disaster. Months, and sometimes years, after the disaster, guilt and earthquake narratives (ie, expressing thoughts and feelings about the earthquake) played key roles in survivors' psychological recovery: guilt suppressed their earthquake narrative; conversely, the narrative alleviated feelings of distress about the earthquake. In time, participants reconsidered their earthquake experiences both alone and through social interaction. This alleviated their emotional reactions; however, participants still experienced attenuated emotional reactions, and some hid their feelings of distress even 20 years postdisaster. Interpersonal relationships modified this psychological process both positively and negatively.

Conclusions

Future psychosocial support plans for disaster survivors may need to (1) include both mental and physical care in the transition from the acute phase to the recovery phase; (2) facilitate supportive interpersonal relationships for survivors during the mid-term recovery phase and (3) provide long-term psychological support to the most traumatised survivors, even if they appear to be functioning normally.

SUBMITTER: Tanaka E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6707693 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Long-term psychological recovery process and its associated factors among survivors of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in Japan: a qualitative study.

Tanaka Eizaburo E Tennichi Honami H Kameoka Satomi S Kato Hiroshi H

BMJ open 20190820 8

<h4>Objectives</h4>The 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake had an enormous negative impact on survivors' health. Many survivors experienced psychological distress and their long-term psychological recovery process remains unclear. Our objective was thus to explore this long-term psychological recovery process.<h4>Design</h4>Qualitative study.<h4>Setting</h4>From January to December 2015, face-to-face interviews were conducted in Kobe, Japan.<h4>Participants</h4>20 affected survivors (55% female; ...[more]

PMID: 31434779

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Project description:BackgroundChildren who are exposed to natural disasters are at greater risk of developing mental and behavior problems. Prior studies have suggested that positive parenting practices could prevent child mental and behavior problems among those who were exposed to natural disasters. Parent-child interaction increases oxytocin level in parents and infants; however, studies assessing the change in oxytocin level after positive parent-child interaction and its effect on child behavior problems among preadolescents who were exposed to natural disasters are lacking. This study investigated whether playful interaction stimulated oxytocin levels in 34 mother-child dyads who experienced the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake in Kesennuma City in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, and the effect of the maternal oxytocin changes on child behavior problems.MethodsParticipants were recruited in 2012 after the Great East Japan Earthquake. Annual surveys were conducted from 2012 to 2017. Salivary oxytocin level was assessed before and after the playful interaction in 2015. Behavior problems were evaluated by caregivers, using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) in 2017. Fixed effect regression analyses were conducted to determine the effect of playful mother-child interaction on oxytocin level by comparing the change in the 10 min after the interaction with the change in the 10 min before the interaction. We also examined the effect of maternal oxytocin changes before and after the playful interaction on the onset of child behavior problems in 2017.ResultsA significant increase in maternal oxytocin level was detected following playful interaction, especially among mothers of first-born boys (2.63 pg/mg protein. 95% CI: 0.45, 4.81). Maternal psychological distress and trauma were also negatively associated with an increase of oxytocin levels. The increase in maternal oxytocin level was significantly associated with lower externalizing problem score of children 2 years later.ConclusionOur results might suggest a rational for potential preventive intervention for child behavior problems through playful mother-child interaction after natural disasters.

Project description:BackgroundLittle research has examined associations between disaster-related home loss and multiple domains of health and well-being, with extended long-term follow-up and comprehensive adjustment for pre-disaster characteristics of survivors.ObjectivesWe examined the longitudinal associations between disaster-induced home loss and 34 indicators of health and well-being, assessed ∼9y post-disaster.MethodsWe used data from a preexisting cohort study of Japanese older adults in an area directly impacted by the 2011 Japan Earthquake (n=3,350 and n=2,028, depending on the outcomes). The study was initiated in 2010, and disaster-related home loss status was measured in 2013 retrospectively. The 34 outcomes were assessed in 2020 and covered dimensions of physical health, mental health, health behaviors/sleep, social well-being, cognitive social capital, subjective well-being, and prosocial/altruistic behaviors. We estimated the associations between disaster-related home loss and the outcomes, using targeted maximum likelihood estimation and SuperLearner. We adjusted for pre-disaster characteristics from the wave conducted 7 months before the disaster (i.e., 2010), including prior outcome values that were available.ResultsAfter Bonferroni correction for multiple testing, we found that home loss (vs. no home loss) was associated with increased posttraumatic stress symptoms (standardized difference=0.50; 95% CI: 0.35, 0.65), increased daily sleepiness (0.38; 95% CI: 0.21, 0.54), lower trust in the community (-0.36; 95% CI: -0.53, -0.18), lower community attachment (-0.60; 95% CI: -0.75, -0.45), and lower prosociality (-0.39; 95% CI: -0.55, -0.24). We found modest evidence for the associations with increased depressive symptoms, increased hopelessness, more chronic conditions, higher body mass index, lower perceived mutual help in the community, and decreased happiness. There was little evidence for associations with the remaining 23 outcomes.DiscussionHome loss due to a disaster may have long-lasting adverse impacts on the cognitive social capital, mental health, and prosociality of older adult survivors. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP10903.

Dataset Information

Long-term psychological recovery process and its associated factors among survivors of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in Japan: a qualitative study.

Objectives

Design

Setting

Participants

Outcome measures

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Long-term psychological recovery process and its associated factors among survivors of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in Japan: a qualitative study.

Similar Datasets

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