Hong Kong children less happy than ever, survey finds, and Occupy 'may be a factor'
Professor suggests fall in happiness could be related to Occupy protests
The happiness index for children and teenagers in Hong Kong hit a new low last year, says a professor from Lingnan University who believes the decline may be related to last year's Occupy protests.
The decline was sharpest in the 15-17 age group, for which the index slipped from 6.58 two years ago to 5.83 last year - a drop of 11.4 per cent.
The survey, commissioned by the Hong Kong Early Childhood Development Research Foundation, asked youngsters aged eight to 17 a string of questions on various aspects of their lives, including their family relations and school pressure.
It took place from September to November - around the same time as the height of the 79-day Occupy protests.
Despite the drop in happiness, the survey found the proportion of children who said they faced high pressure from schoolwork also fell from 18.2 per cent to 14.6 per cent. There was a drop of almost half in those reporting high pressure from extra-curricular activities - down from 12.1 per cent in 2013.
The scores for parental relations and discipline and children's perception of their family's financial well-being remained unchanged.
The centre's director, Professor Ho Lok-sang, said the overall changes were not significant. But he said the decline might be related to the Occupy movement and the political controversies arising from it.
"After taking out all [other] factors, we can't see there are other reasons," Ho said, explaining why he thought Occupy was a factor. However, he said he had no supporting evidence.
The survey, carried out among pupils from 10 secondary and 10 primary schools, found that children were more satisfied if their parents were happier.
High pressure from schoolwork and extracurricular activities made pupils unhappy by depriving them of sleep, Ho said.
Pupils in higher grades were also generally less happy than their young counterparts; those who had good friends, however, led a more joyous life, the survey suggested.
The professor noted that respondents who "very much agreed" that schools should provide life education tended to record higher scores.
Dr Patrick Ip Pak-keung, of the research foundation, said Occupy's impact on children varied. He said children who learned a lot during the movement were keener to take the initiative.