School refusal behavior in South Korean first graders: A prospective observational community-based study

Abstract

Refusing to attend school is a serious problem that could lead to psychopathology. We aimed to: (1) prospectively observe the actual development of school refusal behavior according to a history of separation anxiety symptoms (SAS) and (2) explore factors for predicting school refusal behavior in children who were just beginning primary school. The participants were 277 children, aged 6–7 years, who were expected to enter primary school in 2 months. The parents were surveyed about the child׳s history of SAS and their behavior. The children were questioned about anxiety symptoms. The children were surveyed about whether school refusal behavior developed or not after they entered primary school. Of the 248 children who responded to the follow-up survey, 7.66% of children met the criteria for school refusal behavior during the 3 months after entering school. We found no significant differences in the occurrence of school refusal behavior according to the children׳s SAS history. Familial risk factors for school refusal behavior included low parental educational level and a working mother. School refusal behavior by first graders cannot be fully explained by the expression of SAS and could be implicated in a more complex psychopathology.