Domestic Violence and Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Among Adults

Background: Exposure to domestic violence is associated with self-injurious thoughts and behaviors, including suicidal and nonsuicidal self-injury. However, an updated comprehensive review of the literature is unavailable. Aims: This systematic review aimed to describe the strength of the association between domestic violence exposure and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors among the adult population based on global literature. It also aimed to identify mediating and moderating factors and discuss whether the association varies according to the form of violence, sex, and between high-income countries (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Method: Systematic searches in EBSCO, PubMed, ProQuest, SCOPUS, and Google Scholar identified 36 eligible articles published between 2012 and 2024. We assessed the methodological quality and extracted relevant data for narrative synthesis. Results: Studies showed a significant and moderate association between domestic violence exposure and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in HICs and LMICs, as well as among males and females. Some studies reported a stronger association of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors with psychological and sexual violence. Mediators and moderators included posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and loneliness. Limitations: Meta-analysis was not possible due to heterogeneity in definitions and measures of domestic violence and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors employed by the studies. Conclusion: There is strong evidence for the association between domestic violence and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors, indicating a critical need to integrate prevention and intervention efforts.