Characteristics of Type D personality in Korean adolescents

To examine the prevalence of the Type D construct using the Korean version of the Type D Personality-14 (DS14) on the Korean youth population and to identify relationships between the Type D construct and other mental health measures. Adolescent participants aged 13-18 years were recruited from 12 schools (7 middle schools and 5 high schools) in Ansan city, located in the southwest area of Gyeonggi-do province, Korea. A total of 4,899 students were assessed with the Korean version of the DS14, Beck depression inventory (BDI), Korean Eppendorf Schizophrenia Inventory (K-ESI), Adolescent Mental health Problem behavior Questionnaire (AMPQ), and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Korean version (AUDIT-K). We found significant differences in all the measured scales and subscale scores between two groups, those with Type D personality and those without (BDI: p < 0.001, K-ESI: p < 0.001, AMPQ: p < 0.001, AUDIT-K: p < 0.001). When comparing the distributions of the high risk participants identified by the results of BDI, K-ESI, AMPQ, and AUDIT-K between participants with either Type D or non-Type D personality, a significantly higher proportion of high risk participants were in the Type D personality group according to all measures (BDI: p < 0.001, K-ESI: p < 0.001, AMPQ: p < 0.001, AUDIT-K: p < 0.001). In conclusions, Type D adolescents experience various and more severe mental health problems. Type D personality was more related with internalizing symptoms in Korean adolescents. DS14 can be useful in a community mental health program designed for adolescents.