Self-, Other-, and Dual-Harm During Adolescence: Childhood Risk Factors and Early Adult Correlates

• In Event: Poster Session 01
  In Poster Session: PS 01 Topic - Developmental Psychopathology

Abstract

Harm against self and others ranks among the major public health challenges facing young people in the Western world, and inflicts substantial costs on individuals and societies. The behaviors involved in self- and other-harm are often similar, including, for example, hitting or cutting. Yet, self-harm is typically considered a symptom of internalizing, and other-harm of externalizing psychopathology. Importantly, self- and other-harm co-occur in some adolescents, but little is known about the childhood developmental antecedents and adult correlates of adolescent dual-harm.

This study examined the longitudinal associations between 1) social and psychological risk factors in childhood and adolescent dual-harm, and 2) adolescent dual-harm and subsequent social and mental health impairments in early adulthood. Participants (N = 1482) came from a prospective-longitudinal community-representative study. Adolescent dual-, self-, and other-harm were assessed at ages 13, 15, and 17, via self-reports. Developmental antecedents (i.e., social and psychological risk factors, see Figure 1) were assessed between ages 7 and 11; early adult correlates (i.e., social and psychological impairments, see Figure 2) were assessed at age 20. Groups with dual-harm, self-harm only, other-harm only and no harm were compared.

Between ages 13—17, 7.6% of adolescents reported dual-harm, 17.1% reported self-harm only, and 13.8% reported other-harm only. Figures 1 and 2 show bivariate contrasts between the groups with single-, dual-, and no harm in terms of their childhood risk factors and early adult correlates. In childhood, adolescents with dual-harm were characterized by more sensation seeking, internalizing and externalizing symptoms, self-control difficulties, substance use, delinquency, family risks (i.e., parental divorce, uninvolved and aversive parenting), peer victimization (i.e., bullying, assault), and less school bonding compared to adolescents not engaged in harmful behaviors (Figure 1). Although some of these childhood risk factors (i.e., sensation seeking, parental divorce and lack of involvement, violent victimization by peers) characterized all harm groups, others were common among the dual- and self-harm or the dual- and other-harm groups only. Dual-harm was also associated with several unique risk factors, including very high levels of childhood physical aggression, aversive parenting, and low school bonding. In early adulthood, those with prior dual-harm had more anxiety/depressive symptoms, psychopathy symptoms, homicidal ideations, delinquency, and violent victimization experiences than any other group (Figure 2). In addition, they reported more relational and physical aggression and more bullying victimization experiences than those with self-harm only; and more suicidal ideations and feelings of being socially excluded than those with other-harm only. Results from regression models controlling for childhood risk factors indicated that dual-harm was associated with more relative increases of social and psychological impairments compared to the other groups.

Adolescent dual-harm is associated with psychological problems and social disconnection in childhood and signals high risk for more psychopathology and social isolation in early adulthood. Interventions aimed at reducing young people’s risk for engaging in dual-harm, or at curbing the burden once this behavior has been initiated, need to target adolescents, their families, peer networks, and school environments. Differentiating youth with dual-harm from those with single-harm is important for the development of specialized treatments.

Authors

• Annekatrin Steinhoff, University of Zurich
  Presenting Author

• Laura Bechtiger, University of Zurich
  Non-Presenting Author

• Denis Ribeaud, University of Zurich
  Non-Presenting Author

• Manuel Eisner, University of Cambridge
  Non-Presenting Author

• Lilly Shanahan, University of Zurich
  Non-Presenting Author