Appealing idea

Mao said he founded the group on the internet after noticing that such a subculture existed. Before the words "lying flat" appeared, phrases such as fo xi, which means "as calm as a Buddha" and refers to people with a low level of ambition, had cropped up on social media.

"I think 'lying flat' is a sub-sector in social psychology. It may not even influence people's actual behavior, as they still need to work and study hard to have a good life," he said.

"But the idea inevitably has its appeal. People are always tense and they need to vent their feelings."

"Lying flat" has caused controversy, with many people fearing the younger generation has lost the appetite to work hard for a better life.

Li Zongheng, 26, a technology data analyst, said "lying flat" is widely seen by young people as being contrary to nei juan, another internet term that means "unduly fierce competition".

"The words 'lying flat' should be seen from two sides. On the one hand, it is important to aspire and to struggle, but on the other, it may not be good to blindly follow others in unreasonably fierce competition, which could damage one's psychological and physical health," he said.

Cui Chaoxia, 25, who works for an animation production company, said no one she knows is "lying flat".

"Too many young people who follow '996' working schedules shop hard and spend all their monthly salary at the same time. Many of us are adopting another way of thinking," she said.

"We want to control our desire to consume, to enjoy life in a simpler way. We want to learn to live a more balanced life, to take better care of our health, and to spend more time with family, not just to work hard."

Wang Fen, 33, a financial worker at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said: "When we use the expression 'lying flat', we don't mean we are not working. We simply don't like vicious competition. We work as hard as we can, but we are also looking at life in a more balanced way."

Chen Rui, associate professor of communication psychology at Communication University of China, said the appearance of buzzwords such as "lying flat" deserves further research, but there is no need for society to be unduly concerned about them.

"Many people may think the expression 'lying flat' is interesting. It should not be taken literally to mean young people are 'lying flat' and not doing any work," he said.

"The students I know now, and recent graduates, are keen to discuss such buzzwords, but they are working and studying hard. They do not actually lie flat," he added.

Chen said people should not overly rely on the internet when they want to learn about trends in society.

"According to a report by the China Internet Network Information Center, less than 10 percent of internet users have a bachelor's degree or higher qualification. We cannot say that netizens represent the younger generation, or that they represent the majority of the population," he said.