Use of Baidu Index to Track Social Attention to Primary School Students' Mental Health in China
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.57125/FS.2026.09.20.04Keywords:
Primary School Students' Mental Health, Mental Health Education, Search Engine, Baidu Index, Public attention, Social big data.Abstract
Background and Objectives: With the rapid development of the internet, search engines have become key information platforms. As China‘s most popular search engine, Baidu developed Baidu Index, a crucial statistical analysis tool. This study uses Baidu Index to explore public attention to “primary school students‘ mental health”, analyzing its trends and geographical distribution.
Materials and Methods: Baidu Index provided attention data for the keyword “primary school students‘ mental health” from January 1, 2024 to April 22, 2026. Public attention was analyzed across three dimensions: trend research, demand graph, and crowd portrait. A comparative analysis was also conducted with the related keyword “primary school students’ mental health education”.
Results: The search volume showed an overall downward trend with periodic fluctuations. The public most attended to “mental health”, “primary school students‘ mental health education”, and “mental health handwritten newspapers”. Concerned groups were mainly distributed in East China, dominated by females aged 30–39. The related keyword showed a similar search trend but had a consistently higher search index.
Conclusion: Baidu Index effectively tracks public attention to primary school students’ mental health, reflecting changes linked to educational policies and social events. It can help authorities understand public psychological needs and optimize the allocation of mental health education resources.
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