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Yating Yang

A Chinese student who suffered a mental breakdown after watching a horror film during a self-study session has won a legal case against her school.
A court has ordered the school’s insurance provider to pay 9,182 yuan (US$1,300) in compensation.
The incident took place in October 2023 at a school in Hengzhou, Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, southern China.
As the assigned teacher was on temporary leave, the class was held as a self-study session.

During this period, some students suggested watching a film, and with the full agreement of the class head teacher and all classmates, a horror movie was chosen and screened.
The name and details of the horror film have not been disclosed.
During the evening of the day on which she watched the film, a student known by the pseudonym Zihan began showing signs of incoherent speech and mental confusion while chatting with her mother online.
Her alarmed parents took her to hospital.
Doctors diagnosed her with acute and transient psychotic disorder, a mental health condition characterised by a sudden loss of contact with reality that could be triggered by psychological stress.

Zihan’s parents believed that their daughter’s mental state was directly triggered by watching the horror film and argued that the school had failed in its duty to provide proper educational oversight.
As a result, they filed a lawsuit and demanded 30,000 yuan (US$4,200) in compensation.
During the proceedings, the court noted that Zihan had no previous history of mental illness, nor was there any family history of such conditions.
The school argued that the student’s breakdown was primarily due to her “special physical constitution” or an “underlying illness”, asserting that the incident was unrelated to the administration of the school.
They claimed to have already implemented comprehensive psychological health education systems and were only willing to bear 10 per cent of the responsibility.
The school also said that it had bought liability insurance covering more than 5,000 students, including Zihan, with an individual coverage limit of 500,000 yuan (US$70,000).

The Hengzhou People’s Court recently ruled that the school bore 30 per cent of the responsibility, ordering its liability insurer to compensate Zihan with 9,182 yuan for economic losses.
The court determined that, while the event had been organised with the school’s approval, reflecting a failure in management, Zihan’s voluntary participation meant her own physical condition was also a major contributing factor.
The incident, reported by Jiupai News, quickly ignited a heated online discussion.
One person said: “The school is unlucky. Well, from now on, this school will probably not dare screen any films. Do you believe it?”
However, another online observer said: “Honestly, they should not have shown a horror film. There are so many classic films to choose from, and this one was even approved by the teacher. The school definitely bears some responsibility.”


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China pupil suffers mental breakdown after watching horror film during self-study at school

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Screening of chiller in classroom sees girl hospitalised after she becomes ‘incoherent’, displays signs of ‘mental confusion’

Screening of chiller in classroom sees girl hospitalised after she becomes ‘incoherent’, displays signs of ‘mental confusion’