Life in company dormitories and a career change are associated with anxiety over lack of privacy among radiation decontamination workers in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to obtain knowledge for improvement of the housing and life among radiation decontamination workers by examining the effect of housing type on anxiety over lack of privacy. METHODS: This cross-sectional study comprised 544 male radiation decontamination workers in Fukushima Prefecture who anonymously answered self-administered questionnaires in 2013, including measurement of privacy anxiety, housing type, career change, social support, and sociodemographics. Chi-square tests and binary logistic regression analysis were used to evaluate the associations between these factors and anxiety over lack of privacy. RESULTS: The number of workers who had anxiety over lack of privacy was 93 (17.1%), and the number of workers who were living in owner-occupied housing, rental housing, company dormitories, and hotels was 165 (30.3%), 177 (32.5%), 168 (30.9%), and 34 (6.3%), respectively. The presence of anxiety was significantly associated with housing type (p <0.001), a career change (p = 0.005), and the location of the worker's previous residence (p <0.001). Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that life in a company dormitory and a career change were separately associated with anxiety over lack of privacy (p <0.001 and p <0.027, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: We found that anxiety among radiation decontamination workers over lack of privacy increased if they lived in company dormitories or had changed careers to become a radiation decontamination worker. These findings demonstrate the need to improve occupational mental health management, with an intensive focus on the residential environment.