A psychological test for Chinese youngsters has been developed and approved as effective after 15 years of research, and hailed by well-known Chinese experts as "a new method to prevent Chinese youngsters' psychological diseases," according to sources with the Beijing Normal University.

The test was jointly designed by a team of 20 experts, headed by Prof. Zheng Richang of Beijing Normal University. The system includes 29 sub-tests on psychological health, studiousness, innovative spirit and other aspects of the psychology of Chinese primary and middle school students.

An investigation among 16,572 Chinese middle and primary school students in five different provinces and regions showed that 16.4 percent of primary school students had abnormal psychological problems, and 4.2 percent had serious problems. Among junior high school students, the figures were 14.2 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively. And for senior high school students, the figures were 14.8 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively.

"Fierce academic competition, divorce and the one-child family policy have all contributed to the surge of psychological problems among Chinese youngsters," Dr. Liu Shixiang, chief researcher of the test system, told Xinhua. "China is in urgent need of an effective psychological test system."

Noting the test system so far has been piloted among 20,000 Chinese youngsters, Liu said software will be developed based on the test system. Eventually, an information sharing platform on youngsters' psychological problems will be set up.

(Xinhua News Agency July 19, 2005)