"These Things Don't Work." Young People's Views on Harm Minimization Strategies as a Proxy for Self-Harm: A Mixed...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Public Health

Background:

• UK clinical guidelines tentatively recommend harm minimization for repeated self-harm.
• There is a lack of empirical evidence on the acceptability and effectiveness of these strategies.
• Young people's perspectives on harm minimization strategies are crucial for informing practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore young people's views on harm minimization strategies as a proxy for self-harm.
• To assess the acceptability and perceived effectiveness of these strategies among adolescents.
• To investigate whether these strategies are used as self-harm or alternative coping mechanisms.

Main Methods:

• Mixed-methods study involving secondary analysis of data.
• Online questionnaire with 758 participants assessing frequency of strategy use.
• Semi-structured interviews with 45 participants using thematic analysis.

Main Results:

• Many young people viewed harm minimization strategies as ineffective proxies for self-harm.
• When helpful, the utility of these strategies was short-lived or situation-specific.
• Some participants reported using harm minimization strategies, like elastic band snapping, as a form of self-harm.

Conclusions:

• Harm minimization strategies should not be recommended in isolation.
• The use of harm minimization strategies requires careful monitoring.
• Further research is urgently needed to establish an evidence base for self-harm interventions.