Logo-Autobiography and Its Effectiveness on Depressed Korean Immigrant Women

This study aimed to explore the effectiveness of logo-autobiography (LA) as a therapeutic modality for Korean immigrant women suffering from depression and perceiving their lives as meaningless. A nonrandomized quasi-experimental study was conducted with pretest, posttest, and a 4-week follow-up test. Forty subjects—20 with antidepressants and 20 without—were divided quarterly and assigned to the experimental group and the control group. The experimental group reported a significant lower score on depressive symptoms (F = 6.832, p = .013; F = 19.800, p ≤ .001) and a higher score on meaning of life (F = 12.294, p = .001; F = 12.232, p = .001) than did the control group immediately after completing the LA and a 4-week follow-up. The LA was more effective for the subjects in the nonmedication group than in the medication group. In conclusion, LA is effective in reducing depressive symptoms and increasing a sense of meaning in life among Korean immigrant women suffering from depression

Socio-demographic and Health Behavioral Correlates of Depressive Symptoms among Korean Americans

This study identified socio-demographic characteristics and their help seeking behaviors of depressive symptoms among adult Korean Americans (KAs). Using survey data from 230 residents of the New York City, Teaneck New Jersey, and Philadelphia areas, simple and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the association between depressive symptoms and the covariates. Women were at much lower risk of depressive symptoms than were men, even after adjusting other covariates (OR=0.45, 95% CI=0.21–0.96). Having no health insurance(OR=4.02, 95% CI=1.28–12.61) and having experience in seeking professional help for mental health problem during last year were significantly associated with depressive symptoms (OR=2.96, 95% CI=1.29–6.80). Impact of gender, lack of health insurance coverage, and previous help-seeking behavior may be possible explanations for the KA’s higher prevalence of depression