Prevalence of Psychological Distress, as Measured by the Kessler 6 (K6), and Related Factors in Japanese Employees

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of and related factors for psychological distress among employees. The employees in Akita prefecture, Japan, were invited to complete the Kessler 6 (K6). A value of 13 or higher on the K6 scale indicated high psychological distress. Furthermore, we identified the relationships among the prevalence of high psychological distress, socio-demographic status, and employment-related variables. The data of 1,709 employees indicated that 10.8% of the employees had high psychological distress; the proportion of psychological distress found in the present study was high compared to that found in previous studies. The identified socio-demographic and occupation-related factors included young age groups associated with a high risk and clerical or administrative tasks associated with a low risk of psychological distress. The data of this study can be used as K6 benchmark values, which enhance the significance of future corporate health risk appraisal surveys.

The associations between unhealthy behaviours, mental stress, and low socio-economic status in an international comparison of representative samples from Thailand and England

“…We have also observed that the occurrence of psychological distress was unrelated to gender among Thais (narrowing gender differences across levels of health-related behaviours); this result is consistent with another study from Japan [36] and may reflect a common cultural pattern in Asian countries. In contrast, among the UK samples, females reported significantly more distress at any given level of health related behaviours, which is consistent with a 2009/10 World Health Organization survey in Europe [23].…”

A pilot study evaluating the factors associated with psychological distress of school teachers in Kagawa Prefecture, Japan

“…We also showed that the rates of medical doctors and public health nurses with psychological distress by using the K6 were 6.0% and 5.9% in Kagawa prefecture, Japan [18,19]. Fushimi et al reported that 10.8% of Japanese employees had high psychological distress in Akita prefecture, Japan [20]. In this study, a total of 8.2% of school teachers were defined as having psychological distress in Kagawa prefecture, Japan.…”

“…In this study, a total of 8.2% of school teachers were defined as having psychological distress in Kagawa prefecture, Japan. Therefore, the rate of school teachers with psychological distress was higher than that of Japanese general people, medical doctors and public health nurses [17][18][19], and similar to that of Japanese employees [20]. According to data on the mental health of school teachers in Japan, the proportion of teachers with minor psychiatric disorders was higher than that among civil servants [6] by using the Japanese version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) [21].…”

Prevalence and correlates of psychological distress symptoms among patients with substance use disorders in drug rehabilitation centers in urban Nepal: a cross-sectional study

“…The K6 offers the advantage of being a broader screening tool compared to some of the other locally validated mental health screens such as the General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), and Patients Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), because it is not specific to a single disorder and has been validated to screen for common disorders in developing country settings [24]. The scale is available in a Nepali version [25] and has been used previously in Nepal [26], as well as in a variety of cultural settings in different parts of the world [27, 28]. The K6 uses a Likert scale to establish how often an individual has experienced psychological distress over the preceding 30 days.…”