Weight-related Behaviors and Non-suicidal Self-injury in Clinically-referred Adolescents (2008)

Undergraduate: Sara Simpson

Faculty Advisor: Mitch Prinstein
Department: Psychology & Neuroscience

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Previous research suggests that non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is more likely to occur in individuals who engage in weight-related behaviors (i.e., bingeing behaviors and weight-loss behaviors). This longitudinal study examined the relationship between NSSI and weight-related behaviors over a three-month interval within a clinical adolescent sample. Data was collected from a psychiatric inpatient facility for 140 youth ages 12 to 15. Measures were administered at two time points and included self-report indices assessing NSSI and weight-related behaviors. Results indicated that for females only, NSSI was positively correlated with bingeing behaviors and weight-loss behaviors. Females were also shown to have higher levels of NSSI than males. Additionally, the combination of high levels of depressive symptoms with high levels of weight-related behaviors was associated longitudinally with NSSI. Theoretical explanations, clinical implications, and directions for future research are discussed.