A survey of depressive symptoms among South Korean adults after the Korean financial crisis of late 1997: prevalence and correlates.

Objective: We examined the prevalence of high levels of depressive symptoms and their association with sociodemographic and health characteristics in an urban Korean population following the financial crisis in late 1997.

Methods: Using data from a cross-sectional survey conducted in Ansan-city, Korea, from June 1999 to June 2000, we examined the prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms in a randomly selected sample of 4897 (2531 male and 2366 female) subjects aged 18 to 92 years. The prevalence and odds ratios of "probable" and "definite" depressive symptoms, defined as a Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) score of > or = 16 and > or = 24, respectively, were calculated.

Results: The mean CES-D score and prevalence of "probable" and "definite" depression were significantly higher in women (15.63, 41.67%, and 12.05%, respectively) than in men (14.43, 35.05%, and 8.10%, respectively) (p < 0.0001). In multiple logistic regression analysis, being female, unemployed, unmarried, self-assessed as unhealthy, and having a low income were found to be significant predictors of "probable" and "definite" depressive symptoms in Korean adults.

Conclusions: Although current data cannot be directly compared with those reported in the most recently published Korean data from 1994, considerably high mean CES-D score and prevalence of depression speculate that the Korean financial crisis of 1997 had an effect on the development of depressive symptoms in Korean adults.