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Self‐injury and self capacities: Assisting an individual in crisis
Author(s) -
Deiter Pamela J.,
Nicholls Sarah S.,
Pearlman Laurie Anne
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/1097-4679(200009)56:9<1173::aid-jclp5>3.0.co;2-p
Subject(s) - psychology , injury prevention , suicide prevention , poison control , clinical psychology , psychology of self , childhood abuse , human factors and ergonomics , occupational safety and health , child abuse , psychiatry , developmental psychology , medicine , medical emergency , social psychology , pathology
This article reports findings of a study on self‐injury, childhood abuse, and self capacities that supports a theory for understanding and assisting self‐injuring individuals in crisis. In the study, 233 adults from partial hospital settings and an outpatient clinic answered questions concerning self‐injury, abuse history, and three self capacities (the ability to tolerate strong affect, the ability to maintain a sense of self‐worth, and the ability to maintain a sense of connection to others). More than 60% reported childhood abuse. More than half reported self‐injury. Individuals with a history of self‐injury showed greater impairment of self capacities than individuals who did not report self‐injury. Individuals with a history of childhood abuse showed greater impairment than did individuals who did not report childhood abuse. Greatest impairment was associated with both self‐injury and abuse. Implications of the results are explored and the theory for assisting self‐injuring individuals in crisis is presented. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Clin Psychol 56: 1173–1191, 2000