Dataset Information

Sense of Unity and Self-Reported Health Among 15-year-Olds: Findings From the Swedish 2017/18 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children Study.

ABSTRACT: Objectives: Sense of unity refers to the positive feeling of being part of a larger social structure. This study aimed to investigate to what extent adolescents report sense of unity and if this differs across groups, and to assess the associations between sense of unity and self-reported health while taking into account sociodemographic characteristics and tangible social relationships. Methods: Data were obtained from the 2017/18 Swedish Health Behavior in School-aged Children study, using information collected among 15-year-old students (n = 1,392). Linear and binary logistic regression analyses were performed. Results: The participants reported overall high levels of sense of unity. Sense of unity did not differ by gender, but adolescents without an immigrant background and those with higher family affluence reported higher levels. Sense of unity was inversely associated with psychological complaints, somatic complaints, and less than good self-rated health, even when adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and family, classmate, and teacher relationships. Conclusion: This study suggests that sense of unity may be an important social determinant for adolescent health. More research is needed on the origins and implications of sense of unity.

SUBMITTER: Wahlstrom J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8565282 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Sense of Unity and Self-Reported Health Among 15-year-Olds: Findings From the Swedish 2017/18 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children Study.

Wahlström Joakim J Modin Bitte B Svensson Johan J Löfstedt Petra P Brolin Låftman Sara S

International journal of public health 20210420

<b>Objectives:</b> Sense of unity refers to the positive feeling of being part of a larger social structure. This study aimed to investigate to what extent adolescents report sense of unity and if this differs across groups, and to assess the associations between sense of unity and self-reported health while taking into account sociodemographic characteristics and tangible social relationships. <b>Methods:</b> Data were obtained from the 2017/18 Swedish Health Behavior in School-aged Children st ...[more]

PMID: 34744583

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Project description:BackgroundStudies of secular trends in mental unhealth indicate that adolescents in the Nordic countries, especially girls, have an increased reported prevalence of mental health problems the last decades. This increase needs to be seen in the light of the adolescents' assessments of their perceived overall health.ObjectiveTo investigate whether a person-centered approach to research can enhance understanding of changes over time in the distribution of mental health problems among Swedish adolescents.MethodA dual-factor approach was used to study changes over time in mental health profiles among nationally representative 15-year-old adolescent samples from Sweden. Cluster analyses of subjective health symptoms (psychological and somatic) and perceived overall health from the Swedish Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) surveys of 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 were used to identify these mental health profiles (n = 9,007).ResultsFour mental health profiles were identified by a cluster analysis which combined all five data collections-Perceived good health, Perceived poor health, High psychosomatic symptoms, and Poor mental health. There were no significant differences in the distributions of these four mental health profiles between the survey years 2002 and 2010, but substantial changes took place between 2010 and 2018. Here, particularly the High psychosomatic symptoms profile increased among both boys and girls. The Perceived good health profile decreased among both boys and girls, and the Perceived poor health profile decreased among girls. The profile involving the most pronounced mental health problems, the Poor mental health profile (perceived poor health, high psychosomatic problems), was stable from 2002 to 2018 among both boys and girls.ConclusionThe study shows the added value of using person-centered analyses to describe differences in mental health indicators between cohorts of adolescents over longer periods of time. In contrast to the long-term increase in mental health problems seen in many countries, this Swedish study did not find an increase among young persons, both boys and girls, with the poorest mental health, the Poor mental health profile. Rather, the most substantial increase over the survey years, predominantly between 2010 and 2018, was found among the 15-year-olds with High psychosomatic symptoms only.

Dataset Information

Sense of Unity and Self-Reported Health Among 15-year-Olds: Findings From the Swedish 2017/18 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children Study.

Publications

Sense of Unity and Self-Reported Health Among 15-year-Olds: Findings From the Swedish 2017/18 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children Study.

Similar Datasets

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