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AbstractFacing the new era, we should re-examine and understand the theory of "the pattern of unity in diversity of the Chinese nation" put forward by Fei Hsiao-tung from the historical and cultural perspectives, which will bring us many new insights. The Chinese national consciousness of unity can be understood as "Ge" (格), while "Ju (局) as "layout" and "distribution", which means in the same spatial scope and form of "Ge", how the units within the Chinese nation are laid out and distributed. Under such "Ge" and "Ju" viewpoints, people and goods, nature and society, culture and technology, China and the world, can be connected and integrated so that a reciprocal community with "being together" could possibly come true at last, and cultural self-consciousness, consciousness of the others' cultures and mutual cultural consciousness are inevitable. On this basis, it is meaningful to discuss the ultimate goal and state of construction of a community with a shared future for mankind and the world of "Great Harmony".

Nowadays, a multicultural perspective seems more pressing between clinicians and psychotherapists. For systemic family therapists, a cross-cultural conversation is necessary to respond well to this request. The past three decades have witnessed a rapid development of family therapy in China both clinically and academically since the late 1980s. Intending to lay a solid foundation for cross-cultural exchange between Western and Eastern therapists, this article gives a brief review on the application of family therapy in China along with cultural issues faced by Chinese psychotherapists. Some main topics are covered, such as the social background of the boom of family therapy, the cultural compatibility and the effectiveness of family therapy, the peculiarity of Chinese families, and the cultural adaptation of family therapy. Despite all the fruitful achievements, given the current Westerncentrism in the field of psychotherapy, it is still a long way to further the indigenisation of family therapy in China. From the review, it is clear that more theoretical research from a critical spirit and comparative research with an open-minded attitude is needed to further the indigenisation of family therapy in China.

Objective: Although, there has been a growing number of studies on school refusal in Western cultures, the underlying factors that contribute to school refusal in Chinese adolescents remain unclear. This study aimed to better understand why Chinese adolescents refuse to go to school and to further interpret what they want to express through their school refusal behaviors. Methods: We performed a qualitative study using an interpretative phenomenological analysis. Twenty adolescents with school refusal experiences were recruited from the clinical psychology department of two mental health hospitals in Shanghai, China. They participated in semistructured, face-to-face in-depth interviews. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed according to the guidelines of interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings: Five main superordinate themes emerged from data analysis: (a) competition-oriented social environment; (b) family living space dominated by conflicts; (c) personal living space lacking meaningful support; (d) conflict between the pros and cons of being labeled with a psychiatric diagnosis; and (e) reintegration in school life. Conclusions: Our analysis emphasized the complex interacting effects of the social environment, family interpersonal conflicts, personal psychological factors and mental health complaints on the development and maintenance of Chinese adolescents' school refusal. These factors contributed to school refusal at each level and influenced each other's effects on school refusal behaviors. Therefore, interventions for Chinese teenagers with school refusal may need to integrate strategies that inspire reorganization and changes in different ecosystems, such as strategies related to government policy, peer relationships, family systems and individual inner dynamics.

Background: Few studies have examined the relationship between family functioning, social support and quality of life in patients with anxiety disorder. There is a paucity of research on anxiety disorders and their predictors in China. Aims: This study aimed to explore family functioning, social support and quality of life for patients with anxiety disorder and examine the relationship between these elements. Methods: A total of 107 patients who met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV) criteria for anxiety disorder and 80 healthy controls completed the McMaster Family Assessment Device, the Perceived Social Support Scale and the short form of the Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire. Results: The findings indicate that patients with anxiety disorder in China tend to have poor family functioning and quality of life, as well as a higher subjective perception of social support. There were strong correlations between family functioning, social support and quality of life. Affective involvement and not living with parents were identified as risk factors for anxiety disorders, while a high family income was a protective factor. Conclusion: Anxiety disorder is associated with reduced family functioning and poorer quality of life for Chinese patients. In addition, the Family Assessment Device is a suitable instrument for evaluating family functioning in Chinese patients with anxiety disorder.

The comparative study of voice hearing is in its early stages. This approach is important due to the observation that the content of voices differs across different settings, which suggests that voice hearing may respond to cultural invitation and, ultimately, to learning. Our interview-based study found that persons diagnosed with schizophrenia in China (Shanghai), compared to those diagnosed with schizophrenia in the United States, Ghana, and India, reported voices that were strikingly concerned with politics. Compared to participants in the United States in particular, voices seemed to be experienced more relationally: Shanghai participants reported voices notable for a sense of benevolent persuasion rather than harsh command, and knew the identities of their voices more so than in the United States. The voices were striking as well for their religious content, despite the previous prohibition of religion in China. Our findings further support the hypothesis that voice hearing seems to be shaped by context, and we observe that this shaping may affect not only conceptual content but the emotional valence of the experience.

Background: Existing studies of depression and family functioning have used western samples to examine how depression and impaired family functioning are related, and to explore levels of discrepancy between depressed patients and their family members. The purpose of the current study is to explore these questions in a Chinese sample. Method: This study examined the association between family functioning and depression in a Chinese sample of 60 depressed patients and their family members and 60 non-clinical controls and their family members. The study evaluated levels of agreement between family members on a self-report measure of family functioning (Family Assessment Device) using reliability statistics. It also compared families' self-reported family functioning to that of a trained observer using an observational rating scale (McMaster Clinical Rating Scale). Results: Results indicate poorer family functioning among Chinese families with a depressed family member, high to moderate agreement between patients and family members, moderate to low agreement between non-clinical participants and their family members, and moderate correlations between subjective and objective ratings of family functioning in a mainland Chinese sample. Conclusions: As in other cultures, depression is associated with impaired family functioning in Chinese families. There is good agreement between family members and a trained evaluator about the family impairments. The Family Assessment Device and the McMaster Clinical Rating Scale are useful for assessing family functioning in Chinese families.