Abstract
The limited research on bullying, mental health (MH), and help-seeking for Asian American (ASA) college students is concerning due to the public health importance. Korean drama (K-Drama) television shows may be an innovative approach to improve knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors (KAB) on bullying. This study examined whether the KAB about school bullying improved after watching a K-Drama and asked participants about their perspectives of using a K-Drama as an intervention. A convenience sample of college students (n = 118) watched a K-Drama portraying school bullying and MH issues. Pre-/post-tests on KAB on bullying were conducted. Interviews (n = 16) were used to understand their experiences with K-Dramas. The mean age was 22.1 years (1.6 SD), 83.9% were female, and 77.1% were ASAs. Many reported experiences with anxiety (67.8%), depression (38.1%), and school bullying victim experience (40.8%). Post-test scores revealed significant differences in knowledge by most school bullying variables (e.g., victim; witness) and MH issues. There were varying significant findings in post-test scores in attitudes and behaviors by these variables. Participants reported that they “love” the drama, felt an emotional connection, and thought that K-Dramas can be an educational tool for ASAs. K-Dramas may be an effective population-level tool to improve health outcomes among ASAs.
Highlights
Research highlights that there is a prevalence of bullying as well as the correlations of experiences of bullying victimization and adverse mental health consequences, such as increased risk for depression and anxiety [1,2]
This study found that K-dramas were most influential for increasing knowledge changes for those with and without victim of school bullying experience but there were no significant differences found for attitudes
This study demonstrates the promise of using K-dramas as an innovative social marketing tool to educate communities about mental health and school bullying
Summary
Research highlights that there is a prevalence of bullying as well as the correlations of experiences of bullying victimization and adverse mental health consequences, such as increased risk for depression and anxiety [1,2]. Bullying is unwanted aggressive behavior that occurs repeatedly in the context of a power differential [3]. Bullying is intricately related to the field of mental health as it is both a cause and a symptom of many psychosocial issues. Perpetrators and victims of bullying both report feelings. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 1637; doi:10.3390/ijerph17051637 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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