Edmondson, AJ, House, AO orcid.org/0000-0001-8721-8026 and Brennan, CA orcid.org/0000-0002-5258-8497 (2016) Non-suicidal reasons for self-harm: A systematic review of self-reported accounts. Journal of Affective Disorders, 191. pp. 109-117. ISSN 1573-2517
Abstract
Background: Self-harm is a major public health problem yet current healthcare provision is widely regarded as inadequate. One of the barriers to effective healthcare is the lack of a clear understanding of the functions self-harm may serve for the individual. The aim of this review is to identify first-hand accounts of the reasons for self-harm from the individual’s perspective.
Method: A systematic review of the literature reporting first-hand accounts of the reasons for self-harm other than intent to die. A thematic analysis and ‘best fit’ framework synthesis was undertaken to classify the responses.
Results: The most widely researched non-suicidal reasons for self-harm were dealing with distress and exerting interpersonal influence. However, many first-hand accounts included reasons such as self-validation, and self-harm to achieve a personal sense of mastery, which suggests individuals thought there were positive or adaptive functions of the act not based only on its social effects.
Limitations: Associations with different sub-population characteristics or with the method of harm were not available from most studies included in the analysis.
Conclusions: Our review identified a number of themes that are relatively neglected in discussions about self-harm, which we summarised as self-harm as a positive experience and defining the self. These self-reported “positive” reasons may be important in understanding and responding especially to repeated acts of self-harm.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Self-harm; non suicidal; systematic review; function |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Medicine (Leeds) > Leeds Institute of Health Sciences (Leeds) > Centre for Health Services Research (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Medicine (Leeds) > Leeds Institute of Health Sciences (Leeds) > Academic Unit of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 10 Dec 2015 11:41 |
Last Modified: | 09 Apr 2021 15:52 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2015.11.043 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.jad.2015.11.043 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:92465 |