The Impact Factors on Mental Health of Male and Female Korean Adolescents - Focusing on Sexual Experience: Analyzing Data from the 11th Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey

Abstract

Purpose: This study explored the effect of adolescents’ sexual behavior on mental health according to behavior, demographic, and sex-related characteristics. Methods: The 11th Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey was conducted with 67,427 adolescents in South Korea. The hierarchical logistic regression was conducted to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to investigate the relationship between adolescents’ sexual behavior and mental health (i.e., stress, depressive state, suicidal ideation, and subjective happiness). Results: Male and female adolescents were more likely to experience stress, depression, and suicidal ideation if they were high school students, low-income, smoked, drank, and/or had low academic achievement. Those with sexual experience showed higher levels of stress and depression and suicidal ideation rates and lower happiness. After controlling for a variety of covariates, including individual, family, and school factors, adolescents experienced sexual intercourse showed significantly higher mental health status ORs than those who had not had intercourse. Conclusion: It is necessary to provide an expanded health education program that combines healthy lifestyle and mental health promotion rather than fragmentary sex education to prevent negative physical and mental consequences of sexual intercourse among adolescents.