NCJ Number
143430
Journal
Corrective and Social Psychiatry and Journal of Behavior Technology Methods and Therapy Volume: 37 Issue: 4 Dated: (October 1991) Pages: 64-67
Date Published
1991
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Three hundred eighty-three reports about episodes of self-mutilatory behavior (SMB) were collected over a period of 3.5 years within the Department of Corrections of a southeastern State.
Abstract
Reports were coded and analyzed according to subjects' age, gender, race, institutional placement and status, type of self-destructive behavior, and date of incident. The mutilators' ages ranged from 17 to 70 years, but 82 percent were 30 or younger. During the reporting period, 376 men (3.9 percent of the male inmates) and 7 women (2 percent of the female inmates) engaged in SMB. Of the total sample of 383, 292 were white, 90 were black, and 1 was Hispanic. Types of intentional SMB observed included self-lacerations, self- choking, medication overdoses, and self-burning. Other incidents included ingestion of non-digestible objects such as metal or glass, self-shock, poisoning, and jumping from high places. Restrictiveness of institutional status was coded as high or low. Although less than 7 percent of the inmate population was restricted at any given time, 82.6 percent of the self-mutilators were on restrictive status. Self- mutilations occurred most frequently during hot weather. The report also contains 3 tables and 35 references.