Changes in Chinese primary school students’ mental health during 2001–2021: a cross-temporal meta-analysis

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the changes in mental health among Chinese primary school students from 2001 to 2021. We conducted a cross-temporal meta-analysis including 93 studies (43,199 Chinese primary school students) to evaluate the relationship between the year of data collection and the total Mental Health Rate Scale for Pupil (MHRSP) scores and the scores of each factor. We found that their correlations were strong and negative (p < 0. 05). Over the past 21 years, the mental health of Chinese primary school students has generally been improving with time. Primary school students’ MHRSP total scores and factor scores decreased by 0.28–4.94 points, or 0.20–0.59 standard deviations. Male pupils mostly scored higher than female pupils on MHRSP total scores and factor scores. The factor scores and total scores were not significantly correlated with the years for urban pupils, and there was a significant negative correlation between behavioural disorders and the year for rural pupils. The mental health of students in grades 5–6 have been steadily improving over the years, while the upward trend is weaker in grades 1–2 and least pronounced in grades 3–4.