The Status Of Mental Health Among Rural Teenage Students In Different Economic Zones In Chongqing

Purpose： To measure the self-concept and the characteristics ofteenage students in different economic zones of Chinese city undergoingrapid urbanization，and to identify factors influencing this self-concept andcharacteristics，specifically the relationship between economic status andself-image.Methods：A total of1,889students were selected from two juniormiddle schools in each of three diverse economic zones of the Chongqingmunicipality in China. Students were identified on the basis of clustersampling conducted in2009. There questionnaires were administered,including a self-report of demographic characteristics，the Piers-HarrisChildren’s Self-concept Scale （PHCSS） and the Eysenck PersonalityQuestionnaire（EPQ）.Results： Quantitative analysis of the results reveals that the incidenceof low self-concept among rural junior students in Chongqing was28.11%.A comparison of self-concept scores in the three zones revealed the highestscores in the Metropolitan Advanced Economic Sphere（31.79%）and the lowest in the Reservoir Area of Three Gorges（21.99%）.According toANOVA and analysis of covariance， highly statistically significantdifferences were found in the diverse districts on five out of six of thedimensions of the scale: behavioral adjustment; intellectual competenceand school status; physical appearance and attributes; freedom fromanxiety; and popularity. No statistically significant differences were foundon the dimension of “happiness and satisfaction”.The different statistic characteristics were behavioral adjustment(F=6.70，P=0.0013), intellectual competence and school status (F=14.55，P＜0.0001), physical appearance and attributes (F=9.21， P＜0.0001),anxiety (F=8.05， P=0.0003) and popularity (F=19.30， P＜0.0001).Furthermore, students’ self-concept was immediately related to variousfactors such as gender (F=1.40110，P＜0.01), age (F=0.64351，P＜0.01),father’s educational background (F=0.71693， P＜0.01), familyrelationship(F=4.76202，P＜0.01), relationship with others (F=3.95503，P＜0.05), academic results (F=3.07847， P＜0.01), and online time(F=-1.02380，P＜0.01) in terms of Multiple Regression Analysis.Charateristics included Extraversion、Introversion and Neuroticismshowed no differences in three diverse economic zones（P＞0.05），whilewe found difference in Lie. Each dimension in children version of EPQ wasinflunced by social environment, gender, age, father’s educationalbackground, family environment, school environment, school report, the time of surfing internet and so on（P＜0.05）by Multiple RegressionAnalysis. Pearson correlation analysis indicated the assoication betweeneach dimension of Children’s version of EPQ and each factor of PHCSS（P＜0.05）.Conclusions：This study suggests that the rural junior middle schoolstudents living close to the city have a greater risk of low self-concept thanthose in other zones with higher（lower）economic status in Chongqing,China. In addition, this study has provided useful baseline information onself-concept levels and personality，and has identified important riskfactors that would be considerable in planning strategies for prevention ofmental health problems for the rural junior students in Chongqing, China.