Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
Department of Psychiatry, National Center for Mental Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, China.
BMC Public Health. 2024 Oct 5;24(1):2719. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-20130-7.
Adolescence is a critical period for the onset of mental health issues. In China, high school students face significant academic and social pressures, leading to high rates of mental health challenges. Gender differences in the manifestation of these symptoms have been observed, with boys and girls exhibiting distinct psychological profiles.
This study aims to explore the structure of psychological symptoms among Chinese high school students using network analysis, focusing on identifying core symptoms and gender differences in symptom networks. The key objectives are to: 1) identify the central psychological symptoms for boys and girls, and 2) uncover the interactions between symptoms to inform targeted interventions.
A cluster sampling method was used to recruit 3,769 high school students (2,206 males and 1,563 females) in Shanghai. The Middle School Students Mental Health Scale (MSSMHS) was administered, and network analysis was conducted using the R packages bootnet and qgraph to assess symptom network edges, centrality, and network strength. Comparisons between male and female networks were made.
Network analysis showed tightly connected symptom networks for both genders, with 43 non-zero edges for boys (sparsity 0.04) and 39 for girls (sparsity 0.13). Depression was the core symptom for boys (centrality 1.20), while anxiety was central for girls (centrality 1.46). Boys showed a stronger link between interpersonal sensitivity and depression (edge value 0.20), while girls exhibited a stronger connection between anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms (edge value 0.16). Network comparison tests revealed no significant differences in overall network strength between boys (4.625) and girls (4.660), with P-values greater than 0.05 across all comparisons.
This study highlights significant gender differences in the psychological symptom networks of Chinese high school students. Depression and anxiety emerged as core symptoms for boys and girls, respectively. These findings provide a foundation for developing gender-sensitive mental health interventions, emphasizing the need for tailored approaches based on gender-specific symptom profiles.
青春期是心理健康问题开始出现的关键时期。在中国，高中生面临着巨大的学业和社会压力，导致心理健康问题的发生率很高。已经观察到这些症状在男孩和女孩中的表现存在性别差异，男孩和女孩表现出不同的心理特征。
本研究旨在使用网络分析探讨中国高中生心理症状的结构，重点是确定核心症状和症状网络中的性别差异。主要目标是：1）确定男孩和女孩的核心心理症状，2）揭示症状之间的相互作用，为有针对性的干预提供信息。
采用聚类抽样法，在上海招募了 3769 名高中生（男生 2206 人，女生 1563 人）。采用中学生心理健康量表（MSSMHS）进行测试，并使用 R 包 bootnet 和 qgraph 进行网络分析，以评估症状网络边缘、中心性和网络强度。比较了男女网络之间的差异。
网络分析显示，两种性别都存在紧密连接的症状网络，男生有 43 个非零边缘（稀疏度为 0.04），女生有 39 个非零边缘（稀疏度为 0.13）。抑郁是男生的核心症状（中心性为 1.20），而焦虑是女生的核心症状（中心性为 1.46）。男生人际敏感与抑郁之间的联系较强（边缘值为 0.20），而女生焦虑与强迫症状之间的联系较强（边缘值为 0.16）。网络比较测试显示，男生（4.625）和女生（4.660）的整体网络强度没有显著差异，所有比较的 P 值均大于 0.05。
本研究强调了中国高中生心理症状网络中存在显著的性别差异。抑郁和焦虑分别是男孩和女孩的核心症状。这些发现为制定基于性别敏感的心理健康干预措施提供了基础，强调需要根据性别特异性症状模式制定有针对性的方法。
