Some students who suffer from intense pressure try to relax through unhealthy ways like excessive eating and drinking, a survey has found.
The survey was jointly conducted by the Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong, Chinese YMCA of Macau and Guangzhou-Hong Kong-Macau Youth Research Institute. It interviewed more than 3,000 secondary and university students from Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Macau on what made them stressed and how they dealt with it.
Most of the respondents said their studies and social relationships were the main reasons for their anxiety.
The other factors included money and social problems, other people's expectations of them and trying to keep fit.
The findings showed there was a relationship between where the students lived and studied and how much pressure they felt.
Most Hong Kong university students said their stress mainly came from their studies. In Guangzhou, money and other people's expectations were cited as the main causes. Macau students mostly worried about money and their studies.
'Hong Kong's competitive education system has long been a main cause of stress for students,' said Shiu Yuen-ling, one of the pollsters from the Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong.