The Effect of Female North Korean Defectors' Exposure to Violence on Mental Health: Focused on Moderating Effect of Informal Social Control

Background: The number of North Korean defectors residing in South Korea now exceeds 30,000. After 'the march of suffering' in 1997, the number of North Korean defectors has steadily increased, and since 2002, the rate of female North Korean defectors increased which is now 71% of the total North Korean defector population. Primary reasons for the high rate of female North Korean defectors are the anxiety of livelihood maintenance, human trafficking, and de facto marriage with foreigners.

    In the case of female North Korean defectors, this population suffered severe mental health problems during defection. The types of violence most female North Korean defectors experienced are physical violence, mental abuse, and sexual violence. Although South Korea provides some short-term services such as material supports and administrative support to North Korean defectors, there are few professional interventions and long-term programs on mental health to support female North Korean defectors.

    Therefore, this study was conducted to enhance the understanding of the violence experienced by female North Korean defectors during defection, and to explain that proper interventions are important for the family, neighbors, and surrounding people of the female North Korean defectors so they can maintain a healthy lifestyle in South Korea.

 

Methods:  The data in this study were from the North Korean Family Neighborhood Study 2014, and a random sample of 204 female North Korean defectors were selected. Ordinary Least Square Regression Model was used to test the hypotheses and used exposure to violence as independent variable, and mental health as dependent variable. This study also included an interaction term between exposure to violence and Informal Social Control as a moderator variable with the assumption that exposure to violence affects mental health differently hinged on the Informal Social Control.

 

Results: The exposure to violence (b=8.508, p<.01) was statistically significant for mental health; however, Informal Social Control did not appear statistically significant. The following is the relationship between exposure to violence and mental health by applying the interaction of the moderating variable of exposure to violence and Informal Social Control. By regulating the control variables, people who experienced violence during defection have a positive effect on mental health when the Informal Social Control intervened (b=-.155, p<.001). 

   Thus, the intervention of Informal Social Control has a positive effect on mental health when experiencing violence during defection, and has a moderation effect. Therefore, the result implies that Informal Social Control can be a protective factor to female North Korean defectors’ mental health.

 

Implications: The findings suggest South Korea should develop an integrated mental health system that considers not only the individual issues of female North Korean defectors but also the Informal Social Control of family and neighbors.

    For future studies, it is necessary to clarify how the violence happened to influence mental health. Additionally, the study could examine the exposure of violence by classifying from North Korea, North Korean border, China, and third-country nationals to develop a mental health program for female North Korean defectors.