Direct Self-Injurious Behavior (D-SIB) and Life Events among Vocational School and High School Students

Area of Science:

• Adolescent mental health
• Public health research
• Psychosocial epidemiology

Background:

• Direct self-injurious behavior (D-SIB) is understudied in vocational school adolescents.
• Vocational schools serve populations often associated with lower socioeconomic status.
• Previous research on D-SIB has primarily focused on general high school populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare D-SIB prevalence and life event characteristics in vocational school students versus high school students.
• To examine the association between D-SIB and life events in vocational school adolescents.
• To identify vocational school students as a potentially vulnerable population requiring targeted mental health support.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the "Saving and Empowering Young Lives in Europe" (SEYLE) project.
• Compared a vocational school sample (N=140) with a high school sample (N=995) in Budapest, Hungary.
• Employed self-administered questionnaires for participants aged 14-17 years.

Main Results:

• Lifetime D-SIB prevalence was significantly higher in vocational school students (29.4%) compared to high school students (17.2%).
• D-SIB was associated with suicidal ideation specifically within the vocational school group.
• Different life events were more frequent in the high school group, and D-SIB associations with life events varied between the two groups.

Conclusions:

• Vocational school students represent a vulnerable group with a higher prevalence of D-SIB.
• The relationship between life events and D-SIB differs in vocational school students compared to their high school peers.
• Findings underscore the necessity of developing specific prevention and intervention strategies for vocational school populations.