Learning-related anxiety and its influencing factors among middle school students living in non-traditional families in Shenzhen

Objective To analyze learning-related anxiety and its influencing factors among children living in non-traditional families in order to provide a basis for the control of the anxiety.Methods A multi-stages tratified cluster sampling survey with a questionnaire entitled "Mental Health Testing"(MHT)was conducted to evaluate the anxiety associated with learning.Results The reported rate of study anxiety among the students was 42.5%(41.9% in boys,43.2%,in girls).The mean scores of anxiety for the students from single-parent,remarriage,fosterage and disable/poor families were 6.93,6.67,7.01,6.61,respectively,with no significant difference between various family types.Anxiety about learning was found to be related positively to negation and overprotection from the father,over-interference and overprotection from the mother,and the som atization of illness symptoms among the parents(OR>1,P<0.05 or P<0.01).Conclusion The problem of learning-related anxiety among the students living in non-traditional families was serious,with the manner of bringing-up and somatization of illness symptoms among the parents as the major risk factors.