Childhood trauma, peer victimization, and non-suicidal self-injury among Chinese adolescents: A latent variable mediation analysis

Abstract

Backgrounds: Childhood and peer experiences can influence adolescents' perceptions of interpersonal relationships, which can, in turn, influence their emotional states and behavior patterns. Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is now a common problem behavior among adolescents. The present study examined the role of childhood trauma and peer victimization in adolescents’ NSSI. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1783 adolescents (1464 girls and 318 boys) in the psychiatric outpatient clinics or wards of 14 psychiatric hospitals or general hospitals in nine provinces in China. Data were collected using the Multidimensional Peer Victimization Scale (MPVS), Short-form Childhood Trauma Questionnaire(CTQ-SF), and Functional Assessment of Self-Mutilation (FASM). Structural equation modeling (SEM) with latent variables was used to demonstrate the mediating role of peer victimization in the association between childhoodtrauma and NSSI. Results: The SEM analysis demonstrated that peer victimization plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between childhood trauma and NSSI. . In addition, several covariates (such as age, gender, education level, and place of residence) effectively regulated the relationship between peer victimization and NSSI. Conclusions: In future studies of NSSI among Chinese adolescents, attention should be paid to the roles of childhood trauma and peer bullying; there is a temporal sequence between these two variables and, to some extent, childhood trauma can have an impact on bullying during adolescence which, in turn, influences NSSI behavior.

Predictors of non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents with depressive disorder: the role of alexithymia, childhood trauma, and body investment

“…By contrast, all subscale scores on the BIS, except for body touch, were lower in the group with NSSI compared to the group without NSSI. Our findings support the first hypothesis and are consistent with previous research indicating that childhood trauma and alexithymia increase the risk of NSSI (Kautz et al, 2020;Zhao et al, 2023), while bodily investment serves as a protective factor against NSSI (Pérez et al, 2018). In the final prediction model, childhood trauma and body investment were significant predictors of NSSI behavior, which consistent with previous research (Cipriano et al, 2020;Kautz et al, 2020).…”

Network Analysis of Childhood Maltreatment and Internet Addiction in Adolescents with Major Depressive Disorder

“…As a result, the total score for each subscale ranges from 5 to 25. In previous research, the Chinese version of the CTQ-SF demonstrated commendable reliability [34,35]. Cronbach's alpha in our cohort was 0.801.…”