Extreme social withdrawal is increasingly recognized as a problem among young people around the world. Recent research suggests that a person’s ability to cope with stress blocks the path from symptoms of depression to severe isolation. The study was published in the journal BMC Psychology.
The term hikikomori originated in Japan in the late 1990s. This refers to a state in which people intentionally withdraw from their daily lives. People with this condition are often confined to their homes and bedrooms for six months or more. Initially, experts thought this behavior was unique to Japanese culture.
Recent global data paint a different picture. Estimates suggest that nearly 8% of people around the world may experience this type of severe social withdrawal. The shift from local to global issues has led mental health professionals to look for common psychological triggers. Structural changes in modern society appear to play a major role in the expansion of this trend.
Changing economic conditions and a competitive educational environment are putting tremendous pressure on young people. The normalization of digital communication and online life makes it easier for people to avoid face-to-face interactions. This combination of structural factors makes it easier for many people to withdraw from the outside world. The expectation of success can be too heavy for some people to bear.
Developmental psychologists point out that the period between the ages of 18 and 34 is particularly difficult. This life stage is characterized by role changes, identity changes, and numerous psychosocial challenges. When young people fail to meet social or personal expectations, they may experience deep disappointment. This disappointment can act as a catalyst for a completely isolated lifestyle.
Depression goes hand in hand with this kind of extreme isolation. Depression can limit your willingness to interact with others and can be debilitating. At the same time, prolonged isolation cuts people off from support networks and deepens their grief. This relationship operates in a cycle that is difficult to break.
According to the cognitive model of depression, people develop negative beliefs about themselves and the world. When these negative thoughts are combined with feelings of helplessness, people become less willing to interact with their environment. Social withdrawal reinforces these harmful cognitive patterns. For isolated individuals, every missed interaction is evidence that they do not belong to the outside world.
Researchers want to understand the psychological mechanisms that speed up or slow down this withdrawal process. Specifically, we decided to focus on psychological resilience. Resilience is a person’s internal ability to adapt to stress and recover from difficult experiences. Resilient people tend to remain confident and flexible in the face of external pressures.
Taner Altan, a professor at Istanbul University Serapasa, led the study along with colleagues Ecem Çakin, Rumaysa Dincel and Aydın Ólucay Özcan. The research team noticed a lack of empirical research on extreme social withdrawal within Turkey. They designed a study to investigate how depression and resilience influence social participation among Turkish youth. They focused only on individuals between the ages of 18 and 34.
Researchers recruited 776 participants from across Türkiye and had them complete a series of online surveys. They utilized social media platforms and university networks to distribute the survey. The researcher informed all participants about the privacy protocols before answering the questions.
Participants answered questions about their demographic background, including age, gender, education, and employment status. Most of the respondents in this study were single. The majority reported being at a middle income level and not actively employed at the time of the survey.
To measure psychological well-being, the team used three different assessment tools. They measured the severity of each person’s symptoms of depression using a widely known list. They also utilized a simple scale to measure each participant’s psychological resilience. Finally, they employed a specific questionnaire designed to assess adaptive behaviors associated with severe social withdrawal.
This behavioral scale asks participants about their daily habits and social tendencies. Measures personal values such as goal setting and motivation in life. We also track how often participants leave their homes to communicate with family members and seek help. Higher scores on this scale indicate healthy social integration, while lower scores indicate social withdrawal.
The data revealed a clear pattern between mood and social activity. Higher levels of depression were strongly associated with lower scores on the Social Adjustment Scale. Youth who reported more depressive symptoms were much less likely to participate in social activities. They tended to avoid daily interactions and communication with family members.
Conversely, psychological resilience served as a strong emotional shield. Participants who scored high on the resilience scale reported much healthier levels of daily social engagement. These people stayed connected and continued to set personal goals despite the stress. Coping skills seemed to keep them anchored in the outside world.
The researchers then used a mathematical model to test how these three factors interacted. They found that resilience acts as a bridge between depressed mood and social withdrawal. Depression is more than just locking yourself in a room. Rather, depression depletes a person’s psychological resilience.
When this internal coping mechanism weakens, individuals are more likely to withdraw from society. If people are able to remain resilient, the association between depressive symptoms and extreme isolation disappears. This finding positions emotional coping skills as an important goal of mental health treatment. Strengthening young people’s flexibility may prevent depression from turning into a chronic withdrawal symptom.
The authors noted that sociocultural factors in Turkey may exacerbate the risk of social withdrawal among young people. Economic insecurity and high youth unemployment rates create a highly stressful environment for people entering adulthood. Many young people in this country continue to live with their parents for long periods of time due to financial constraints. These living conditions can limit an individual’s privacy and delay their independence.
Social pressures combined with psychological vulnerability lead young people to isolate as a means of self-protection. Mental health professionals may need to address both individual characteristics and these larger cultural factors when treating young patients. Resilience-enhancing interventions may take the form of targeted cognitive behavioral therapy. Community programs that help young people manage their emotions may also prevent long-term isolation.
The researchers noted some limitations to their study. This study relied entirely on self-report surveys, a common psychological research method. This approach relies on participants answering honestly and accurately. People do not always have perfect insight into their own behavior and emotional states.
The demographic composition of the participants also had limitations. More than 75 percent of respondents were women. Previous international research has shown that severe social withdrawal is generally more prevalent in men. The large number of female participants may limit the extent to which these results apply to the broader population.
This study used a cross-sectional design, meaning all data were collected at a single time point. This approach identifies patterns and relationships, but cannot conclusively prove cause and effect. Researchers cannot say for sure whether depression occurred before loss of resilience based on a single snapshot. Although the results show a theoretically meaningful chronological order, they remain statistical estimates.
The research team provided several suggestions for future research based on these limitations. They recommended following participants over several years to see how mood and feelings of isolation change over time. Tracking people over time reveals the exact sequence of these psychological changes. They also suggested using objective measures of social participation, such as behavioral observations, rather than relying solely on self-reports.
Cross-cultural comparisons will further reveal how extreme isolation varies from society to society. It would be enlightening to see how Turkish youth compare to those in Japan and the United States. Such research would help distinguish between universal human responses and culturally specific behaviors. Identifying these differences is a necessary step in creating effective public health policies.
The study, “Hikikomori in Youth: Exploring the Protective Function of Psychological Resilience,” was authored by Taner Altan, Ecem Chakin, Rumaysa Dincer, and Aydın Olucay Özcan.
