Summarizing the Chinese Psychological Society’s Efforts in Psychological Crisis Intervention
Various major natural disasters and accidents have occurred frequently in China. Since 2008, the Chinese Psychological Society (CPS) has actively participated in psychological assistance following 14 major natural disasters and accidents, impacting nearly 100 million people with 95,000 fatalities. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has further emphasized the crucial need for effective crisis intervention. Major stressful events can lead to severe individual, family, and group trauma. Approximately 20% of people affected by natural disasters may develop serious mental illnesses (WHO, 1992), requiring long-term psychological interventions (Neria et al., 2013). After the Wenchuan earthquake, then-President of the CPS, Zhang Kan, introduced the concept of "20 years of psychological assistance." Over the next 13 years, a psychological assistance program was established, focusing on "one year for small disasters, three years for medium disasters, and five years for large disasters." The professional team, particularly the Crisis Intervention Working Committee, has been consistently supporting mental health in areas affected by the Wenchuan earthquake, both online and offline.
I. Mission and the Third Largest Rescue System:
Immediately after the Wenchuan earthquake, Zhang Kan drafted the "Psychological Suggestions for China's Wenchuan Earthquake Relief Work," providing timely professional guidance. The CPS set up an earthquake emergency response team and initiated a call for national psychologists to engage in psychological rescue work. The Psychological Crisis Intervention Committee was formed to organize experts and volunteers actively involved in emergency psychological crisis intervention and assistance. The slogan "20 years of psychological assistance" was introduced to emphasize the long-term commitment. The CPS has scientifically and continuously organized psychological assistance in over 20 disaster areas, safeguarding the mental and physical health of affected populations. Psychological assistance has been recognized as the third major rescue system after life rescue and material assistance, aiming to help affected individuals return to normal work and life swiftly.
1. Establishing a Post-Disaster Psychological Assistance System:
The Society's experts have played a crucial role in shaping policies related to psychological assistance in China. They submitted governmental consulting reports and provided suggestions for the formulation of policies. The team has promoted the inclusion of psychological assistance in the national post-disaster relief system. They actively participated in drafting guiding opinions, such as the Guiding Opinions on Strengthening Mental Health Services and the Guiding Opinions on Strengthening Psychosocial Assistance for Natural Disasters. The team issued international and domestic standards for psychological assistance, promoting its scientificization and standardization. Key documents include the Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (Chinese version), the Core Humanitarian Standards (Chinese version), and the Working Standards for Post-Disaster Psychological Crisis Intervention and Psychological Assistance (for Trial Implementation). The team also established a technical service platform for psychological assistance in China.
The team organized seminars and forums, including the Psychological Assistance 2016 Forum, the Psychological Assistance 2017 International Symposium, the Psychological Assistance 2018 International Symposium, and the First Beichuan International Psychological Forum. These events aimed to further standardize and guide post-disaster psychological assistance in China. Seminars facilitated the exchange of knowledge and contributed to the development of a technical platform for psychological assistance in China. The team also conducted research to formulate China's PTSD diagnostic model and standards, develop trauma intervention tools, and create a national psychological assistance technical platform. Publications, such as the reportage "Out of the 'Heartquake' Belt," and books on the 10th anniversary of psychological assistance, expanded the impact of psychological assistance, emphasizing its importance in promoting mental health and well-being.
2. Utilizing professional advantages to heal the psychological trauma of disaster-affected people
Over the past fifteen years, more than 2,000 volunteers have actively participated in psychological assistance following major disasters. They have completed 380,000 evaluations of the psychological health status of various groups affected by these disasters. Additionally, the team has successfully trained and established a sustainable group of over 1,500 personnel dedicated to providing psychological assistance during major disasters. This dedicated team has carried out individual psychological counseling over 90,000 times for the sick, wounded, and individuals at high risk of psychological trauma after major disasters. Moreover, they have conducted more than 2,400 group counseling and training sessions, reaching a diverse audience of 70,000 people, including children, youth, teachers, medical personnel, and civil servants. The impact of these efforts extends further through the dissemination of psychological assistance self-help manuals and books, reaching 202,000 individuals and directly popularizing mental health knowledge. Additionally, 215,000 people have subscribed to the SMS service for post-disaster traumatized mobile psychological assistance, while 334,000 individuals have accessed the mobile psychological service system. These collective efforts have directly alleviated the psychological trauma of nearly 1 million disaster-affected people, contributing to the establishment of a sustainable local post-disaster psychological assistance team.
II. Fighting the Pandemic: "Peace of Mind" Initiative
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CPS has actively responded to the national call for prevention and control of the virus, leveraging the core leadership role of the Party organization. It has organized and carried out psychosocial services to combat the pandemic, uniting psychologists nationwide and contributing the professional strength of psychological science.
1. Core Leadership, Scientific and Effective Organization:
The CPS, under the leadership of its Party Committee, played a crucial role in the nationwide "Fighting the Pandemic" initiative by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST). Affiliated branches, provincial psychological associations, and psychologists collectively responded to this call. Acting under the guidance of the Party Committee, they systematically and effectively executed social psychological services, making significant contributions to the prevention and control of the pandemic. The Society prioritized and reinforced the Party's leadership in the fight against the pandemic, aligning its actions with the directives of General Secretary Xi Jinping and the central government. The establishment of a temporary party branch and working group, particularly in the "anti-pandemic peace of mind action," showcased the pivotal role of the party organization on the frontline.
2. Multi-Level and Comprehensive Psychological Anti-Pandemic Work
(1) Anti-pandemic "Peace of Mind" Action
Responding to the new coronavirus pandemic, the CPS, along with the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, established a leading group, executive committee, expert group, and crisis intervention team promptly. The "Peace of Mind" campaign against the pandemic was officially launched on January 28th. A dedicated team of three members, Chen Xuefeng, Liu Zhengkui, and Liu Zhenghui, went to Wuhan on March 7th to conduct psychological assistance. This four-year campaign directly served more than 7.02 million people.
(2) Scientific Guidance and Initiatives
The Clinical Psychology Registration Committee started the "Initiative on Anti-pandemic Psychological Assistance" on January 26, advocating for the inclusion of psychological assistance in the national anti-pandemic assistance system. The Working Committee of Psychological Counselors, in collaboration with the Professional Committee of Psychological Counselors of the China Mental Health Association, released "Self-Help and Assistance to Fight the Pandemic" on the same day. It emphasized the importance of adhering to professional ethics and implementing psychological assistance in a scientific, orderly, professional, and standardized manner. On February 12, under the guidance of the National Health Commission, the CPS, the Chinese Mental Health Association, and the Chinese Society of Social Psychology jointly issued the "Guidelines for Online Psychological Assistance Services during the Prevention and Control of the New Coronavirus Pneumonia Pandemic." The Working Committee of Counselors of the CPS, along with the Professional Committee of Psychological Counselors of the China Mental Health Association, released the "Self-Help and Assistance to Fight the Pandemic" initiative on January 26.
(3) National Psychological Hotline Services
Under the leadership of the Leading Group Office of the Ministry of Education's Response to the Pandemic, the Network Psychology Committee actively collaborated with affiliated organizations and units to enhance and establish the "Ministry of Education's Psychological Assistance Platform of Huazhong Normal University." This platform rapidly provided free services to the society and actively participated in the mobilization and technical guidance of psychological assistance work. The platform, a collective effort of universities nationwide, encompassed over 1,240 institutions and more than 4,000 professional counselors who volunteered their services. It supported up to 1,000 lines of concurrent calls, making it China's premier all-media psychological assistance hotline platform. Endorsed by the National Health Commission and the Hubei Provincial Health Commission, it was designated as the psychological assistance hotline platform for frontline healthcare workers in Hubei. On February 24, the platform was officially launched, offering free psychological assistance services to the public.
(4) Psychological Support for Frontline Workers
To leverage psychology's disciplinary strengths in the pandemic fight, more than 20 members of the Nursing Psychology Professional Committee, representing over 2,000 nurses, actively participated in combating the new coronavirus pandemic in Hubei. They organized and led a team of over 140 professionals to provide ongoing psychological support and intervention services for frontline medical staff. Additionally, Professor Lin Danhua from Beijing Normal University, a member of the Developmental Psychology Committee, collaborated with the Anesthesiology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association and the Anesthesiologists Branch of the Chinese Medical Association. They partnered with the Education Weekly of the People's Political Consultative Conference Newspaper to establish the "Platform for the Psychological Care of Anesthesiologists and Nursing Staff on the Frontline in Hubei." This platform delivered diverse psychological assistance to more than 800 frontline anesthesiologists and nurses.
3. Strengthening Public Psychological Education and Scientific Governance
(1) Public Emergency Awareness
Throughout the pandemic response, the CPS capitalized on the expertise of psychological scientists and technologists. Many of the Society's experts and scholars actively engaged with mainstream media, offering timely responses and scientific guidance on public psychological well-being. The Psychological Counselor Working Committee established a dedicated volunteer team that seamlessly integrated mental health initiatives into various sectors. They disseminated scientific psychological assistance and mental health knowledge, providing services that catered to diverse groups during the pandemic.
(2) Scientific Support Across Industries
The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the nationwide necessity for a comprehensive psychological service system. Beyond healthcare workers, frontline personnel in public security, the procuratorate, courts, and the legal system also required sustained psychological support. In response, the Professional Committee of Legal Psychology of the CPS took the initiative to spearhead a collaborative network of psychological services for the political and legal system. Simultaneously, the Professional Committee of Sport and Exercise Psychology played a vital role in supporting athletes preparing for the Tokyo Olympics amid the pandemic. They introduced a dedicated column, "Psychological Adjustment for Athletes Preparing for the Olympics in Response to C.P.S.," and established a hotline, "Psychological Assistance for Athletes Preparing for the Olympics in Response to Crown Pneumonia."
(3) Consultation on Scientific Research and Decision-Making
To contribute collectively to the pandemic prevention and control efforts, psychologists from the Society proactively collaborated with government departments at all levels. They provided advice and suggestions on work deployment, addressing practical needs. The psychologists submitted comprehensive policy consulting reports covering various aspects, such as the psychological well-being in square cabin hospitals, intervention programs for key populations, and research on the mechanism of psychosocial guidance. These reports and programs served as crucial decision-making references for relevant governments, aiding them in effectively responding to the pandemic.
4. Psychological Support for Resumption of Work, Production, and Education:
In response to the national initiative for the "resumption of work, production, and schooling," the Psychology Popularization Working Committee, in collaboration with the Training and Talent Service Center of the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST), launched the "New Journey - Heart to Go" Psychological Warfare Pandemic Series. This series comprised 10 public lectures and garnered significant acclaim from workers and the general public in science and technology.
Simultaneously, the Working Committee on Psychology Popularization delved into the psychological behavior and health patterns of the public during the pandemic. It examined the psychological states related to the resumption of work and production, as well as the psychological states of parents and teachers during the period of remote learning. A team of experts conducted a nationwide survey titled "Survey on the Public's Psychological Construction in Combating Pandemic," covering 31 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. The findings were compiled into a public version of the survey report, disseminated through platforms such as Popular Science China.
5. Open Communication and Global Collaboration in Pandemic Response:
As the Pandemic extended globally, psychologists increasingly engaged in international academic exchanges on Pandemic prevention and control. They shared their research outcomes with counterparts worldwide, enhancing humanity's collective ability to confront major pandemic.
To reinforce the role of psychology in the global fight against the pandemic, the Working Committee on International Academic Exchange, jointly led by the China Association for Science and Technology and the CPS, organized the "Harmony in Global Temperatures: Navigating Pandemics Beyond Borders - Psychological Strategies in the Community of Human Destiny" conference on May 30, 2012. This event, along with the "Pandemic" International Academic Online Forum, facilitated the sharing of China's achievements in psychological warfare against the Pandemic and provided a platform to hear the perspectives of international experts.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19, the CPS and its affiliates proactively formed expert teams, leveraging their professional guidance and leadership. They collaborated with practitioners, volunteers, and provincial psychological associations to carry out comprehensive initiatives in psychological assistance, emergency science and technology popularization, scientific and technological support, decision-making consultancy, and international exchanges, contributing significantly to the multidimensional battle against the pandemic.
III. Building a Psychological Crisis Prevention and Response System
6. Strengthening Coordination and Establishing Emergency Psychological Assistance System
The CPS collaborated with the Rescue Coordination and Preparedness Administration of the Ministry of Emergency Management to establish a psychological assistance expert pool and a service platform. This initiative aimed to deliver psychological assistance and crisis intervention for individuals affected by disasters and rescue workers. The joint effort led to the initiation of the "Ten Hundred Thousand Project" for psychological crisis intervention and assistance.
In this project, the Society identified 10 chief experts with the highest expertise and experience nationwide. Subsequently, 172 candidates were solicited jointly by the Society, encompassing recommendations from provincial societies. After a rigorous review process, the first batch of the "Chinese Psychological Society - Ministry of Emergency Management Psychological Assistance Expert Group" was finalized, consisting of 58 experts. This group, totaling 114 backbone candidates, covers 31 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. Additionally, foreign experts were invited to jointly train 1,000 psychological assistance cadres across the country. By the end of June 2022, 131 psychological assistance cadres had undergone training, focusing on empirical and practical psychological intervention techniques such as the World Health Organization's Problem Manager (PM+) and Psychological First Aid (PFA).
7. Establishment of a Psychological Commissioner System in Universities
Psychological commissioners play a crucial role in psychological crisis intervention within universities, serving as primary participants and the initial line of defense for the psychological well-being and crisis intervention of college students and postgraduates. Originating in 2004 at Tianjin University with the support and guidance of the CPS, the network of psychological commissioners has expanded to cover 707 colleges and universities as of June 2022, representing 34.5% of the total number of institutions in China. Within these institutions, there are a total of 415,816,000 psychologists, 13,005,645,000 students, and a psychologist-to-student ratio of 3.19%.
The General Office of the Ministry of Education, in a notice dated July 7, 2021, emphasized the importance of mental health management in colleges and universities. Article 6 of the notice specifically highlights the need to strengthen daily early warning and prevention and control. It outlines the improvement and perfection of the "Mental Health Management" system in colleges and universities, incorporating a four-level warning network focused on "school-faculty-class-dormitory/individual." This approach relies on the class psychology committee and similar groups to monitor students for major changes, setbacks, and noticeable abnormalities, integrating the work of psychological committees into the overall psychological framework of colleges and universities.
