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Social support, hopelessness and life satisfaction among Roma and non-Roma adolescents in Slovakia

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Public Health

Abstract

Objectives

Evidence on the psychosocial determinants of health among Roma adolescents is completely lacking. Our aim was to compare social support, life satisfaction and hopelessness of Slovak Roma and non-Roma adolescents and to assess the impact of parental education and social desirability on these differences.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional study among Roma from settlements in the eastern part of Slovakia (N = 330; mean age = 14.50; interview) and non-Roma adolescents (N = 722; mean age = 14.86; questionnaire). The effect of ethnicity on social support, life satisfaction and hopelessness was analysed using linear regression, adjusted for gender, parental education and social desirability.

Results

Roma adolescents reported higher social support from parents, higher life satisfaction and higher hopelessness rates. Parental education explained part of the ethnic differences, as did social desirability. After adjustment for the aforementioned factors, differences by ethnicity remained statistically significant.

Conclusions

Roma adolescents experience higher levels of social support, life satisfaction and hopelessness than non-Roma adolescents. Reduction of hopelessness feelings while maintaining levels of social support and life satisfaction among Roma adolescents should be a topic for both intervention and further research.

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Acknowledgments

This research was partially supported by the Research and Development Support Agency under Contract No. APVV-20-038 205, by the Agency of the Slovak Ministry of Education for the Structural Funds of the EU, under project ITMS: 26220120058 (30 %). This paper was also partially funded within the framework of the project “Social determinants of health in socially and physically disadvantaged and other groups of population” (CZ.1.07/2.3.00/20.0063).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School Kosice Institute for Society and Health, P.J. Safarik University, Košice, Slovakia

    P. Kolarcik, A. Madarasova Geckova & J. P. van Dijk

  2. Department of Health Psychology, Medical Faculty, Institute of Public Health, P.J. Safarik University, Trieda SNP 1, 040 11, Košice, Slovakia

    P. Kolarcik & A. Madarasova Geckova

  3. Olomouc University Social Health Institute, Palacký University Olomouc, Sts. Cyril and Methodius Faculty of Theology, Department of Christian Education, Univerzitní 22, 771 11, Olomouc, Czech Republic

    P. Kolarcik

  4. Department of Social Medicine, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    S. A. Reijneveld & J. P. van Dijk

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  1. P. Kolarcik
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  2. A. Madarasova Geckova
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  3. S. A. Reijneveld
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  4. J. P. van Dijk
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Correspondence to P. Kolarcik.

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Kolarcik, P., Geckova, A.M., Reijneveld, S.A. et al. Social support, hopelessness and life satisfaction among Roma and non-Roma adolescents in Slovakia. Int J Public Health 57, 905–913 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-012-0413-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-012-0413-6

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