The Relationship between Childhood Maltreatment and Non-Suicidal Self-Injury: A Systematic Review

Abstract

IntroductionChildhood maltreatment (CM) has been associated with an increased risk of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicidal behaviors. However, the exact nature of the association between CM and NSSI is currently unclear. The present review aimed to systematically investigate the association between CM and NSSI in adolescence and early adulthood.MethodsA systematic search of four major electronic databases covering both medical and social science research (PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, and PsycINFO) was conducted.ResultsOverall, 20 cross-sectional studies including a total of 22,517 individuals, 3 longitudinal follow-up studies including 1,728 individuals, and 3 retrospective studies including 62,089 individuals were selected. It appears that CM is a significant risk factor for both NSSI and suicide attempts. The increased vulnerability to NSSI seems to be related to experiences of CM, particularly sexual abuse. Gender differences were also found. Generally, when compared to males, females who experienced CM seem to be more vulnerable to presenting with NSSI and suicidal behaviors.ConclusionThere is a positive association between CM and NSSI. The importance of early detection and risk reduction of self-injurious behavior for adolescents is discussed.

Statistical Approaches for Highly Skewed Data: Evaluating Relations between Maltreatment and Young Adults’ Non-Suicidal Self-injury

“…Across Note. F = Final Model; FP = Free Parameters; Adjusted BIC [(n* = (n + 2)/24)]; rm = Removed; SAT = Saturated Model; SAge = Square Root Age these models, the relation between child maltreatment and NSSI was generally moderate in magnitude (Cohen, 1988) suggesting that, consistent with prior work (e.g., Kaess et al, 2013;Lang & Sharma-Patel, 2011;Liu et al, 2018;Serafini et al, 2017), child maltreatment emerged as a robust predictor of NSSI in this sample. The skewness and kurtosis of residual values for each of the models are reported in Tables 6 and 7.…”

“…In light of the prevalence of NSSI, as well as its clinical relevance as a marker of significant psychological distress and impairment (Benjet et al, 2017;Klonsky & Olino, 2008), research that uses appropriate methods to address the highly skewed nature of NSSI data is needed to evaluate NSSI predictors that have been suggested in prior studies. The etiologic contribution of child maltreatment experiences to later NSSI has received consistent empirical support in previous studies (e.g., Kaess et al, 2013;Lang & Sharma-Patel, 2011;Liu, Scopelliti, Pittman, & Zamora, 2018;Serafini et al, 2017). However, as researchers continue to struggle with best analytic practices to adequately address the distributional skewness of NSSI, this investigation compared approaches to address the expected skew in NSSI outcomes by conducting a series of regression analyses to evaluate previously-documented associations between child maltreatment and NSSI.…”

Self-Injury in Adolescents: A Five-Year Study of Characteristics and Trends

“…Childhood abuse has been associated with increases in NSSI behaviors in adolescents (a systematic review by Serafini et al 2017). Exposure to any adverse childhood experience occuring within the first 16 years of life, regardless of the type and event, is significantly associated with NSSI (Wan et al 2015, Duke et al 2010.…”

The Need for Universal Screening for Postnatal Depression in South Africa: Confirmation from a Sub-District in Pretoria, South Africa

“…Other factors associated with PND include lack of social support and a history of depression [ 9 , 10 , 11 ]. On the other hand, younger women between the ages of 20 and 29 years of age are reported to have a higher prevalence of PND than older women [ 12 , 13 ].…”

“…The scale consists of 10 self-reported questions with a total score of 30, and a cut-off score of 12 implies positive PND [ 19 ]. Its appropriate use in several languages and cultures has been confirmed [ 20 , 21 , 22 ], and it is reported to include a high positive predictive value [ 10 ]. It was also previously used in a number of South African studies [ 23 , 24 ], and thus it is appropriate for a South African setting [ 17 ].…”