Why Do Adolescents Self-Harm?

Rasmussen, Susan; Hawton, Keith; Philpott-Morgan, Siôn; O’Connor, Rory C.

doi:10.1027/0227-5910/a000369

Cited by 43 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Low self-esteem is associated with suicidal ideation and behaviour in LGB individuals (Hegna & Wichstrøm, 2007;Ybarra et al, 2015). Self-harm may occur as a means of coping with, avoiding or escaping from highly aversive internal states, including chronically low self-esteem (Rasmussen, Hawton, Philpott-Morgan, & O'Connor, 2016;Taylor et al, 2018). For NSSI, more specifically, motives of selfpunishment are highly endorsed (41-62% of people who engage in NSSI; Taylor et al, 2018).…”

Section: Psychological Correlates Of Self-harm Within Gay Lesbian Anmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological Correlates of Self-Harm within Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual UK University Students

Taylor

Dhingra

Dickson

et al. 2018

Archives of Suicide Research

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This study explores the association between lesbian, gay or bisexual (LGB) status and self-harm in UK higher education students. There is currently limited data on this association, and the role psychological variables have in potentially explaining this link, in UK students. We examine whether LGB status is associated with self-harm (both non-suicidal self-injury [NSSI] and suicide attempts [SA]), and whether 4 psychological variables (depression, anxiety, belongingness, self-esteem) mediate this association. A cross-sectional survey was used. UK university students (n = 707) completed an online survey including measures of self-harm, affective symptoms, belongingness, and self-esteem. Latent Variable Modelling (LVM) was used to test our hypotheses. LGB status remained associated with an elevated risk of NSSI and SA even after accounting for mediating factors. Self-esteem and (in the case of SA but not NSSI) thwarted belongingness, did, however, explain some of this association and were correlated with self-harm risk. The findings suggest that psychological factors may account for the association between LGB status and self-harm and, as such, prevention and intervention efforts directed at these psychological mediators may help to reduce self-harm risk in this population.

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Section: Psychological Correlates Of Self-harm Within Gay Lesbian Anmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological Correlates of Self-Harm within Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual UK University Students

Taylor

Dhingra

Dickson

et al. 2018

Archives of Suicide Research

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“…Self-harm (SH) is characterized by a wide range of behaviours and intentions, including attempted hanging, impulsive self-poisoning, and superficial cutting [ 1 ], which aim to relieve a terrible state of mind [ 2 ] or communicate stress [ 3 ]. SH behaviour is a significant public health issue worldwide with a high prevalence.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A self-harm series and its relationship with childhood adversity among adolescents in mainland China: a cross-sectional study

Han

Wang

et al. 2018

BMC Psychiatry

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BackgroundSelf-harm (SH) is an emerging problem among Chinese adolescents. The present study aimed to measure the prevalence of SH behaviours and to explore the relationship between childhood adversity and different SH subtypes among Chinese adolescents.MethodsA total of 5726 middle school students were randomly selected in three cities of Anhui province, China, using a stratified cluster sampling method. SH was categorized into five subtypes (highly lethal self-harm, less lethal self-harm with visible tissue damage, self-harm without visible tissue damage, self-harmful behaviours with latency damage and psychological self-harm). Multivariate logistic regression was used to explore the relationships between childhood adversity and different subtypes of adolescent SH.ResultsThe prevalence rates of highly lethal self-harm, less lethal self-harm with visible tissue damage, self-harm without visible tissue damage, self-harmful behaviours with latency damage and psychological self-harm were 6.1, 20.4, 32.0, 20.0 and 23.0%, respectively. Childhood sexual abuse and physical peer victimization were associated with each SH subtype with adjusted odds ratios (AORs) ranging from 1.23 to 1.76. Highly lethal self-harm was associated with childhood physical peer victimization, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and emotional neglect. The less lethal SH subtypes (i.e., less lethal self-harm with visible tissue damage, self-harm without visible tissue damage, self-harmful behaviours with latency damage and psychological self-harm) were associated with childhood peer victimization, family life stress event scores and childhood sexual abuse.ConclusionsA high prevalence of SH exists among Chinese adolescents. The association of childhood adversity with SH merits serious attention in both future research and preventive interventions.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12888-018-1607-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…Yet motivations for STB have received less attention. Studies designed specifically to identify why youth engaged in STB reported reasons such as conflict with a family member, self-punishment, and escape from pain (Arkins et al, 2013;Kene & Hovey, 2014;Rasmussen, Hawton, Philpott-Morgan, & O'Connor, 2016). However, these studies were either based in European countries or included U.S. adults in psychiatric hospitals.…”

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confidence: 99%

Associations between school climate, suicidal thoughts, and behaviors and ethnicity among middle school students

Salle¹,

Wang

Parris

et al. 2017

Psychology in the Schools

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The purpose of the current study is to investigate the relationships between suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs), school climate, and student demographics among middle school students. The study was conducted with a sample of 152,191 middle school students across 607 schools within 182 school districts in a southeastern state. Results support prior research that positive perceptions of school climate are associated with fewer reports of STB. Participants identified family reasons, bullying, peer problems, and “other” as the most common reasons for STB. Further, older students and males were more likely to engage in STB than their counterparts. When examining cross‐sectional interactions, race/ethnicity moderated the relationship between school climate and STB. Findings from the study support the role of school psychologists in advocating for prevention and intervention STB supports for middle school students with particular attention to students who may be at increased risk based on group identification. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

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Why Do Adolescents Self-Harm?

Abstract: Background. Given the high rates of self-harm among adolescents, recent research has

Cited by 43 publications

References 45 publications

Psychological Correlates of Self-Harm within Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual UK University Students

Psychological Correlates of Self-Harm within Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual UK University Students

A self-harm series and its relationship with childhood adversity among adolescents in mainland China: a cross-sectional study

Associations between school climate, suicidal thoughts, and behaviors and ethnicity among middle school students

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