Currently, 70 percent of colleges and universities in Beijing have
established psychological health clinics. Ninety percent of college
students have now taken part in a variety of activities concerned
with psychological consultation, said officials from the Beijing
Municipal Education Commission.
A
recent investigation of 126,000 college students from around the
country shows that 20 percent suffer from psychological problems.
"Depressed" and "sick" are becoming words frequently used by
students. At the beginning of the year, an incident involving a
senior student from the prestigious Tsinghua University pouring
sulphuric acid on a bear at the zoo greatly shocked the nation.
People can't help but ask, "What's wrong with our college
students?"
Actually, mental health clinics for Chinese college students were
first instigated by universities in Beijing and Shanghai 20 years
ago. However, recently exposed problems have aroused wider concerns
about the mental health of college students. Tsinghua University
has given 3,000 students a sexual psychology test; the University
of Science and Technology of China has established psychological
records on students and conducted regular surveys on the status of
their mental health; and a newly established College Students
Psychological Consultation Committee in north China's Hebei
Province has been carrying out regular research on the fundamental
health of college students using various activities.
During a half-month-long Mental Health Festival, currently being
held at Peking University, the Psychology Society is holding
lectures to educate people on mental health issues. Meanwhile, a
"growing up healthy hotline," based on an internationally popular
program of peer care, has been put into practice. Trained college
students operate the phones to help solve psychological problems
facing their peers. A "growing up healthy group" will also begin
soon. Group members will help each other to deal with psychological
problems in order to reach the common goal of sound mental
health.
A
psychology clinic has now existed in Peking University's school
hospital for 12 years. However, demands are now outstripping
supply. Recent appointments are being scheduled for up to one month
after initial contact. According to Dr. Fang Xin, many freshmen
register at the hospital and ask doctors to appraise their
psychological condition.
Wang Dengfeng, a supervisor of Ph.D students in Peking University's
Psychology Department pointed out that many psychological problems
confronting college students focus on issues such as self identity,
self worth and interpersonal relations. The overwhelming pressures
of study, poor self care and time management problems all influence
the moods of students and contribute to their anxieties.
A
student majoring in science spent all his time studying, but only
barely passed his exams. In contrast, his roommate easily achieved
high scores in his exams and full marks in a TOEFL test. He feels
incredibly inferior in the face of such huge differences.
"Society as a whole is responsible for the psychological problems
of its young people," said Dr. Fang Xin who has specialized in
psychotherapy for 13 years. "China has been experiencing great
changes in recent years. While feeling the pressures of rapid
development, some people feel unable to handle their own lives,
resulting in high levels of anxiety."
"In some cases pressure on students comes from their parents," said
Dr. Fang, "Due to family planning policies most students are now
single children and, as a result, their parents place great
expectations on them. Such excessive love is counterproductive to
the healthy development of their children."
Society should join together in addressing the issues of mental
health facing college student. "It will be a long and difficult
procedure," said Dr. Fang.
Some experts say China's mental health service is still in its
infancy and that the number and quality of practitioners are
inadequate. Psychology clinics are common overseas, and
psychotherapists are specially trained and required to obtain
licenses through examinations before becoming practitioners. In
Hong Kong and Taiwan, there is at least one professional
psychotherapist for every 1,000 people.
It
is reported that the Ministry of Labor and Personnel has published
Professional Standards for Psychotherapist in order to regulate the
quality of psychotherapy in China.
(china.org.cn translated by Wang Qian, December 31, 2002)