Predictors of Self-Harm Types in Members of Online Communities: Age As a Moderating Variable

BACKGROUND

Deliberate self-harm includes direct and indirect behaviors that cause harm to the body. Various manifestations of such behavior (e.g., non-suicidal self-injuries) are prevalent in adolescent and youth populations, and they often serve as precursors of subsequent suicidal behavior. The interpersonal dynamics that lead to self-harm behavior remain understudied. Interpersonal sensitivity, defined as an anticipation of criticism and fear of rejection in one's relationships with other people, may become one such factor.

AIM

The present study was conducted to investigate the relationship between interpersonal sensitivity, psychopathological symptoms, and types of self-harm.

METHODS

The sample (n=804, 17-35 years, M=23.3±4.6 years) was recruited in online communities. A survey developed by the authors was used to measure the types of self-harm. Other measures included the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure and Symptom Checklist-90-R.

RESULTS

It was discovered that superficial self-injuries could be related to more severe types of self-harm, destructive for the body on the whole (e.g., risk-taking, deprivation, fasting, substance abuse). Fear of rejection and psychopathological symptoms emerged as predictors of both superficial self-injuries and self-destructive behavior. Although younger respondents (17-19 years old) were more likely to inflict on themselves superficial self-injuries, those who scored high on fear of rejection were more likely to report more severe self-destructive behavior. Acute psychological distress elevated this risk for both younger and older participants (27-35 years old).

CONCLUSIONS

The results of the study point at the important role the dynamics of interpersonal relationships plays in perpetuating self-harm.

Risk Factors and Approaches to Preventing Self-Injurious Behavior in Adolescents

The problem of self-injurious behavior from the point of view of the risk factors and prevention in adolescents is considered. Strategies of self-injurious behavior and characteristics of emotional dysregulation in those who self-injure are described. Finding help from peers/online friends and high stigmatizing/self-stigmatizing among self-injuring adolescents should be taken into account in treatment and prevention programs. Methods of preventing of self-injurious behavior are summarized. The following groups of methods are distinguished by purpose: informing about the problem, developing of adaptive self-regulation strategies and psychological and social support. The following prerequisites for developing school-based prevention programs of self-injurious behavior are defined: choosing a target group of adolescents (population, risk group, adolescents in stress-inducing situations), identifying the level of intervention (individual or group work with adolescents, their parents, teachers etc.), assessing the cultural specificity of the group. Programs should be based on current psychological knowledge about the development of self-injurious behavior and implicate the measuring of their efficacy.