Urban-rural differences in student mental health: the Hong Kong scene

Student mental health of Hong Kong urban and rural fifth formers and sixth-formers was assessed by examining their scores obtained from the General Health Questionnaire twice administered. The first administration was done soon after commencement of a school term and served as a baseline measure, and the second was done six weeks before the fifth-formers took an important public examination, a significantly stressful event. The results indicated that all groups of fifth-formers showed an increase in mean scores, reaching statistical significance only in urban boys and rural girls. The latter finding was used to explain urban-rural differences in mean scores. The significance of severe examination distress and its possible late psychiatric sequelae remained unanswered.