NCJ Number
112925
Journal
Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 15 Issue: 2 Dated: (June 1988) Pages: 210-218
Date Published
1988
Length
9 pages
Annotation
It is now recognized that not all self-injurious behavior is suicidal, particularly within correctional settings. This class of behaviors is referred to some authors as deliberate self-harm.
Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to investigate variables that have been described as distinguishing deliberate self-harm from other types of self-injurious behavior. The result suggested that (1) 50 percent of all prison inmates who injured themselves reported manipulation as their goal; (2) contrary to previous research results, deliberate self-harmers were older than suicidal subjects; (3) self-injurious subjects did not receive differential treatment with regard to length of hospitalization; (4) deliberate self-harmers were more frequently diagnosed as having a borderline personality disorder; (5) deliberate self-harmers more frequently had a history of self-injury than suicidal subjects; and (6) the type of self-injury, as defined, failed to distinguish deliberate self-harmers from other self-injurious subjects. (Publisher abstract).