Non-Suicidal Self Injury
and Social Media
Kealagh Robinson & A/Prof Marc Wilson
Social Media Usage among Teenagers
• 95% of all teenagers are online
• 81% use some kind of social media
• A third of teenagers exchange messages
daily on social network sites
Function of the Internet
Identity and Connection:
Online communication creates place for personal bonding and anonymous
disclosure.
(Bargh, Mckenna & Fitzsimons, 2002)
Teenagers who self-injure say that online they
- Obtain support
- Express themselves freely
- Feel safe to do so due to anonymity and privacy.
(Murray & Fox, 2006).
Engaging Online: Photographic Sites
(Baker & Lewis, 2013)
Positive Perspective:
• Show bad it can get
• Creates a place of support
• Looking at the photos can reduce
the impulse
..”Seeing these pictures gives
me a release and sense of calm: it
curbs my urges to cut. Also, knowing
that I’m not alone in this is
comforting…”
Engaging Online: Photographic Sites
(Baker & Lewis, 2013)
Negative Perspective:
• Social irresponsible
• Triggers viewers
• Creates a competition
• Normalises self injury
• Glamorises self injury
..” It seems as though people are
trying to make art out of it and
deepening a connection with it.. . .
Aren’t you concerned people will fall
into the romance of it?
Engaging Online: Videos
(Lewis, Heath, Denis & Nobel,2011)
Analyzed the most popular 50 character videos & 50 non-character
videos.
80% accessible to general audiences.
Explicit representation of self-injury
- 90% of non-character videos had graphic photographs
- 28% of character videos had in-action self-injury
Reception of Videos
(Lewis & Baker, 2011)
Examined the comments on the 100 most popular self-injury videos.
Global comments:
38% self-disclosed a personal history of self-injury
17% admired the message
15% admired the uploader
11% offered encouragement
Recovery themed comments:
Very few positive comments. 43% did not mention recovery and 34% indicated
that they were still self-injuring.
Informal and Professional Support Websites
(Duggan, Heath, Lewis & Baxter 2012)
Informal Websites:
• Range of triggering content
• Accessed more often
• Often hosted by Facebook & other
social media websites
• Themes of hopelessness,
desperation and encouragement
Professional Websites:
• Don’t post graphic images
• Separate NSSI and suicidality
• Themes of recovery and support
Issue of Contagion
Individual differences in susceptibility
(Aral & Walker, 2012)
Self reports of hearing about self injury
(Hodgson, 2004)
Some evidence in certain samples
(Hodgson, 2004)
Response of Social Media
“prohibit [posts promoting self-harm], as a statement against the
very ideas of self-harm that they are advancing”
“Online dialogue about these acts and conditions is incredibly
important; this prohibition is intended to reach only those blogs that
cross the line into active promotion or glorification”
Discussion….