Experts say youthful problems can be prompted by a wide range of factors

Mental issues in teenagers can be caused by a range of factors, but inappropriate parenting methods and family pressures are gradually eroding young people's psychological health, according to professionals in the field.

Given that many children have grown up without siblings since the family planning policy was launched in the 1980s, parents and grandparents have given them excessive attention and protection, said Zhao Hao, head of Golden Crown International Cultural Development, a counseling and training company that specializes in psychological profiling, parenting techniques and the prevention of sexual harassment.

Zhao said these factors have made the children more self-centered and emotionally vulnerable compared with previous generations. He added that parents and the extended family like to plan children's lives in the belief that they know nothing.

However, children today can easily access different types of information and form views about the world around them, so the parents and family should show them more respect.

Moreover, parents are the people their children trust most, so they are willing to share anything with them. However, that trust can be eroded by small things, he said.

Zhao recalled a case in which the mother of a teenage girl broke a promise not to tell anyone that her daughter had a crush on a boy in her class. The mother scolded the girl because she was concerned that the puppy love might adversely affect her development.

She also called her daughter's school and asked her teacher to pay attention to the teenager's performance. The teacher failed to deal with the issue correctly, and allowed the whole class to learn the secret. As a result, the girl refused to go to school or socialize with classmates.

"Parenting styles are often affected by the parents' moods－they just push their child to do things they think are good and correct. However, if a child voices opposition, the parents say 'we do what's best for our child', especially in a country like China," Zhao said.

"Usually, children have no power to fight their parents, and if they have to twist their minds to do things they don't want to do, they may eventually develop mental issues."

Jia Fujun, head of the Institute of Mental Health at Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, said adolescents may experience a range of things, but they may not have the ability to deal with such matters and their unformed minds may be disturbed by factors like changes within the family, overstrict parents and bullying by their peers.

Many parents also live in a state of anxiety, so busy work schedules, financial pressures and concerns about their child's future can affect their views on education, Jia said.

"It is no longer enough for parents to keep their children healthy and happy. In fact, they often neglect their health and happiness to pursue what people around them think of as success, and they ignore their child's interests," he said.

Many parents feel that their generation suffered a lot, so they entrust their feelings and hopes in the next generation, hoping that their children will be excellent in all respects. They use the same parenting methods that their parents used on them, but they neglect to look at their child's development objectively, he said.

Jia recently handled a case of childhood depression that had been prompted by a divorce. The son lived with the mother, who had always felt sorry for him and helped him with everything. However, she rarely had in-depth conversations with the boy.

She sent him to study at a high school in the United States, but he was expelled after a series of rule violations and because he lacked the ability to solve problems by himself.

After the boy returned to China, he was diagnosed with a psychological disorder.

"A growing number of cases of psychological illness among teenagers have been discovered in recent years, and family factors cannot be ignored. Meanwhile, many parents have gradually understood the importance of mental health and taken their child for consultations, which is a good trend," Jia said.