When the definition of self-harm was expanded to include head-banging, scratching oneself, and hitting oneself along with cutting and burning, 32% of the sample said they had done this. In Ireland, a study found that instances of hospital-treated self-harm were much higher in city and urban districts, than in rural settings. The CASE (Child & Adolescent Self-harm in Europe) study suggests that the life-time risk of self-injury is ~1:7 for women and ~1:25 for men. Gender differences
In general, the latest aggregated research has found no difference in the prevalence of self-harm between men and women. This is in contrast to past research which indicated that up to four times as many females as males have direct experience of self-harm. However, caution is needed in seeing self-harm as a greater problem for females, since males may engage in different forms of self-harm (e.g., hitting themselves) which could be easier to hide or explained as the result of different circumstances. Hence, there remain widely opposing views as to whether the gender paradox is a real phenomenon, or merely the artifact of bias in data collection.The WHO/EURO Multicentre Study of Suicide, established in 1989, demonstrated that, for each age group, the female rate of self-harm exceeded that of the males, with the highest rate among females in the 13–24 age group and the highest rate among males in the 12–34 age group.
The motivations for self-harm vary. Some use it as a coping mechanism to provide temporary relief of intense feelings such as anxiety, depression, stress, emotional numbness, or a sense of failure. Self-harm is often associated with a history of trauma, including emotional and sexual abuse. There are a number of different methods that can be used to treat self-harm and which concentrate on either treating the underlying causes or on treating the behavior itself. Other approaches involve avoidance techniques, which focus on keeping the individual occupied with other activities, or replacing the act of self-harm with safer methods that do not lead to permanent damage.Self-harm is most common between the ages of 12 and 24. Self-harm in childhood is relatively rare, but the rate has been increasing since the 1980s. Self-harm can also occur in the elderly population. The risk of serious injury and suicide is higher in older people who self-harm. Captive animals, such as birds and monkeys, are also known to participate in self-harming behavior. Classification
Self-harm (SH), also referred to as self-injury (SI), self-inflicted violence (SIV), nonsuicidal self injury (NSSI) or self-injurious behavior (SIB), are different terms to ascribe behaviors where demonstrable injury is self-inflicted. The behavior involves deliberate tissue damage that is usually performed without suicidal intent. The most common form of self-harm involves cutting of the skin using a sharp object, e. g. a knife or razor blade. The term self-mutilation is also sometimes used, although this phrase evokes connotations that some find worrisome, inaccurate, or offensive.