The Effects of Acculturative Stress and Resilience on Depression of University Students from North Korea

This study investigated the effects of acculturative stress and resilience on the depression of university students from North Korea, and examined the moderating effect of resilience on the relation between acculturative stress and depression. The participants of this study were 116 university students from North Korea (53 males and 63 females) aged between 20 and 35 years. The participants were asked to respond either to a written questionnaire or to an online survey system designed to measure research variables. The data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and a hierarchical regression. The moderating effect of resilience was examined by means of a hierarchical regression. The major findings were as follows: first, an increase in the level of acculturative stress increased that of depression, whereas an increase in the level of resilience decreased that of depression. Second, the moderating effect of resilience on the relation between acculturative stress and depression was statistically significant. That is, the negative influence of acculturative stress on depression was greater when the level of resilience was low, compared to when it was high. In summary, both acculturative stress and resilience had significant effects on the depression of university students from North Korea. Moreover, resilience buffered the detrimental effect of acculturative stress on their depression.