Let more students in need bravely open the door to the psychological counseling room
Over 70% of college students surveyed believe that college psychological counseling rooms can meet their needs
Watching his classmates enter the workforce or enter higher education one after another, Li Sheng, who postponed graduation for a year in order to prepare for a doctoral thesis, felt a little unbalanced. After discovering that his emotional state was not good, Li Sheng, who was studying in a university in Fujian at the time, tried to learn about psychological counseling at the suggestion of a friend and walked into the school's psychological counseling room for the first time.
In recent years, the mental health of college students has attracted more and more attention from all walks of life. In October last year, the National Health Commission introduced at a relevant press conference that all universities in the pilot areas have set up psychological counseling rooms or social studios.
What kind of psychological counseling room do college students need? Do they understand the situation of the psychological counseling room in the school, and can they get their counseling needs met in a timely manner? How was the consultation experience? Recently, China Youth Daily and China Youth Daily launched a questionnaire survey among college students across the country on the construction of psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities. A total of 7,595 valid questionnaires filled out by students from 246 colleges and universities were collected. The survey found that 85.17% of the college students surveyed said that their universities have psychological counseling rooms; 78.13% of the respondents said that the current settings of the school's psychological counseling rooms can meet their needs, of which 43.50% are fully satisfied and 34.63% are relatively satisfied.
Two-way exploration between teachers and students promotes the effectiveness of psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities
As early as 2011, the General Office of the Ministry of Education issued a notice on the "Basic Construction Standards for Mental Health Education for Students in General Colleges and Universities (Trial)", in which the clause on "Construction of a Psychological Counseling Service System for College Students" stated: Colleges and universities should establish according to industry requirements. The psychological counseling room provides psychological counseling services to students. Qualified universities can set up mental health education counseling rooms in colleges (departments) and student dormitories. The opening hours of the psychological counseling room should be able to meet the counseling needs of students.
A recent survey by the China Youth School Media found that respondents solved their confusion through psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities as follows: completely able to solve it (27.37%), partially solved (34.17%), not very able to solve it (7.10%), and not solved ( 1.58%), and more pressure after consultation (0.54%). 54.44% of the respondents said that the psychological counseling room provides a safe, comfortable and private place for students to consult on campus; 50.19% of the respondents believed that they can get answers and help when they encounter confusion, pressure, etc.; 49.69% Respondents believe that college psychological counselors can help solve students' psychological problems and provide emotional support and guidance.
The consultation experience in the school psychological consultation room made Li Sheng feel comfortable and effective. Before making up his mind to seek psychological counseling, Li Sheng read two books related to psychological counseling on the recommendation of friends. “Reading these books has given me some impetus to seek psychological counseling. After reading it, I will understand that psychological counseling is neither a terrible scourge nor an all-powerful panacea. The counselor and the client are in a relationship of mutual help and mutual growth. "With this objective understanding and a peaceful mind, Li Sheng began to make appointments for psychological consultation on campus.
Li Sheng's consultation lasted for about half a year, with a total of about 8 times, once every one to two weeks. "Almost every time I finished the consultation, I shed tears." The counselor is a woman in her 40s who is gentle, kind and tolerant. “She provided a lot of emotional support during the consultation process. In the safe environment of the consultation room, she guided me to think and recall my childhood memories. idea". Li Sheng felt that the consultation was very helpful and also solved some of his inner growth problems.
In January this year, Liu Jianan, who was studying at a university in Guangdong, felt that he was "besieged" by busy internships, unorganized first drafts of papers, and messy job search experiences. His academic troubles brought about poor communication with people around him. Liu Jianan, who was experiencing difficulties and felt that his emotions were not right, thought of psychological consultation. I found the public account of my school’s psychological counseling center on the Internet and found the entrance to make an appointment for consultation. The photos, resumes, specialties, and treatment methods of about 20 full-time on-campus or part-time counselors from off-campus psychological institutions were reflected in Liu Jianan’s photos. eye. During the one-hour communication with the school's counselor, Liu Jianan felt that the biggest gain was the ability to sort out his study, life and mentality in stages. "I didn't know how to sort it out before, and many of my thoughts were chaotic." .
"Compared to before 2020, the overall number and proportion of college students making appointments for psychological consultation rooms has increased every year in recent years." Wei Ping, director of the Mental Health Education Center of Xi'an University of Electronic Science and Technology (hereinafter referred to as "Xidian"), said at the university Having been engaged in psychological counseling for more than 20 years, she believes that the increase in the number of psychological counseling appointments is inseparable from relevant science popularization work and the improvement of social awareness. Overcoming and changing the stigma of mental illness is a direction that the whole society needs to work together.
"Students who are unwilling to come for consultation must have their own reasonable concerns, but we are eager to eliminate the negative impact of the stigma of mental illness so that students in need are willing to seek help from professionals." Wei Ping said that currently, colleges and universities are constantly Explore diversified methods, such as increasing the number of psychological counseling appointments for students, increasing the number of full-time and part-time psychological counselors, opening a simple on-campus psychological counseling appointment system, designing and distributing cultural and creative products for psychological counseling rooms, and setting up popularization of mental health knowledge Public accounts, etc.
There are needs and concerns. Respondents are concerned about the publicity and confidentiality system of psychological counseling rooms.
A survey by the China Youth School Media showed that 68.93% of the respondents believed that they currently have no need for the school psychological counseling room, 14.80% of the respondents had a need for it and had been to the school psychological counseling room, and 16.27% of the respondents had a need for it but had not gone there. Pass. Among the respondents who have needs but have not entered the psychological counseling room, the reasons for not going include not knowing the situation of the school counseling room and not daring to go there rashly (44.86%); they are worried that teachers and classmates will know about it after consulting (27.68%) %); believe that the school psychological counseling room is not professional enough (20.65%); the school psychological counseling room has limited space, difficulty in making an appointment, and complicated procedures (17.73%), etc.
Liu Jianan has seen promotional stickers on how to make an appointment for the school's psychological counseling room at a more conspicuous location such as at the door of the dormitory. "If you consciously want to get help, it is easy to find out how to go to the counseling room." However, different universities have different publicity for psychological consultation rooms. Zhao Mengyuan, who studied at a university in Henan, admitted that she did not know much about the school consultation rooms. When she encounters psychological confusion, the first thing she thinks of is the counselor. There is not much publicity about the psychological counseling room, and some people may not even know where it is.”
"Difficulty in making an appointment" and "mandatory matching of consultants" are also "stumbling blocks" for Lin Haoran from a university in Beijing when choosing an on-campus consulting room. He had negative emotions before and originally planned to make an appointment on campus but never got in line. Because he was eager to get psychological support and counseling, he finally chose a paid psychological counselor on the market.
In response to the concerns of different college students interviewed about possible problems in psychological counseling rooms, Wei Ping said that colleges and universities need to popularize the true situation of psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities through psychology classes, psychological club activities, mental health knowledge lectures, etc. “Take Xidian as an example. We have started to provide compulsory mental health education courses for freshmen in 2007. The classes will not only introduce the specific conditions of the school’s psychological counseling room, but also encourage students to try multiple channels to talk, such as introducing some The off-campus psychological public welfare hotline resources can easily meet the needs of some students who are unwilling to consult on campus.”
Lin Haoran is also concerned about the privacy protection situation in the school psychological consultation room. "I have read some reports. After students consult, the school consultation room will report the student's situation to the college. When some counselors with no psychological counseling experience intervene, it will increase the burden of counseling students. Small troubles turn into big problems, which is not worth the gain. .”
Sui Mengying, who studied at a university in Fujian, was also worried about privacy leaks and unprofessional consultants, but after trying it several times, she felt that this was actually a kind of prejudice. "Due to different training backgrounds, psychological counselors have very different focus and analysis perspectives. Many people feel that the results have not met their expectations. It is likely that they have not met a counselor who is suitable for them."
Liu Jianan once read a self-media article describing how the school's psychological counseling center disclosed students' privacy to parents and classmates. When he took this article to discuss with a familiar psychology teacher, the psychology teacher felt angry and sad. "He said that although he and his colleagues are teachers in the school, they have undergone strict training and will strictly abide by confidentiality principles and work procedures. He is also worried that this article will make students who want to ask for help dare not to ask for help, thus missing out. Opportunities to get help." Liu Jianan feels that the privacy protection mechanism needs to be more rigorous and perfect. At the same time, he also hopes that some self-media will not demonize the school's psychological counseling system, so that a system that is good and necessary can provide students in need with The means of help thus fail.
Regarding the "worry about privacy leakage" that the interviewed college students are concerned about, Wei Ping said that there are strict ethical codes of psychological counseling in psychological counseling, and ensuring the well-being of students is the top priority. She introduced: "A breach of confidentiality requires corresponding objective conditions. For example, a breach of confidentiality will occur when a student commits self-injury, suicide, harms others, etc. If the counselor determines that it is necessary to communicate with the student's parents about the student's situation, the psychological counselor We will communicate with the students themselves, and instead of discussing how to inform counselors and parents, we will repeatedly discuss with students what content will be disclosed and what content will not be disclosed, so that students can understand that the purpose of notification is to better seek various resources. Help yourself through the most difficult period. If counselors need to communicate with students’ parents about the student’s situation, psychological counselors will provide training to counselors, including early psychological construction, how to communicate effectively with parents, so that parents not only pay attention to the students’ problems It also makes parents feel that the school is just like them, and when their children encounter difficulties and challenges, everyone supports each other and faces them together."
College students surveyed look forward to the future development of psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities
Although there is no demand for consultation for the time being, Zhao Mengyuan believes that everyone will encounter moments of anxiety and confusion. Compared with "big pot"-style lectures, she looks forward to targeted communication provided by psychological counseling rooms in universities. "Everyone has a different way of relieving stress. After mastering the general methods of relieving stress, personalized psychological counseling is needed."
Li Sheng, who received inner support from psychological counseling, hopes that students in need can open their hearts and enter the psychological counseling room. However, he also found that the "visibility" of some psychological consultation rooms is not high at present, and young people also lack direct understanding of how to alleviate psychological confusion and even problems. "There are many people who don't know how to solve problems when they encounter them, and cannot easily find resources and paths to help solve problems." He feels that this is a problem that campus mental health agencies should focus on solving.
After having a pleasant counseling experience, Li Sheng hopes that students can learn more about psychology, view psychological counseling objectively, and be able to open their hearts and enter the psychological counseling room when necessary. Now that he is studying for a Ph.D. at Fudan University, he is thinking about going to the consulting room of the new school for consultation if he has the opportunity. This time it is not because I feel unhappy, but to analyze my own personality and causes to help myself develop better. "Psychological counseling is not necessarily only used to solve inner pain. Life-long growth is also an important direction. Many people do not understand this aspect, but it can help us achieve more complete psychological functions." After entering a new learning stage, Li Sheng felt that his value system was changing. He hoped to find the school's psychological consultation room and go to a more comfortable and safe environment to sort out his new thinking.
A survey by the China Youth School Media found that respondents have expectations for the development of psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities, including increasing counseling positions to meet the needs of more students (55.39%); improving the confidentiality system of consulting rooms (53.19%); and simplifying consultation room appointments. process (50.81%); equip with full-time psychological counselors and introduce more professional talents (50.28%).
Regarding the future development of psychological counseling rooms in colleges and universities, Wei Ping has her own opinions. She believes that mental illness and psychological counseling should be de-stigmatized first. “We cannot crudely label students because they encounter some problems, but we should accompany them to face them together and believe that they have the potential to solve problems.” Secondly, the construction and development of mental health education in colleges and universities cannot be separated from high-quality psychological counselors, and the issue of the competency of psychological counselors deserves attention. "It is necessary to pay more attention to the career development, promotion space, salary and benefits of psychological counselors, so that the work of psychological counselors can be seen by more people, so that they can serve students without worries." In addition, psychological counseling and psychology in colleges and universities Crisis intervention is a systematic project that requires the joint participation of teachers, students, parents, and the entire society. "Maybe some students are showing some symptoms now, but please give them more patience, tolerance and companionship. When he really gets out of this period, he will be very grateful for the ray of light in his darkest days. , let him keep at it.”
(Except for Zhao Mengyuan, the other students interviewed in this article are pseudonyms)
China Youth Daily·China Youth Daily reporter Cheng Sibi Ruoxu Wang Junli Source: China Youth Daily
Version 06, April 08, 2024