Emotional Responses to Social Media and Non‐Suicidal Self‐Injury Among Adolescents
Athena B. Thai, Melissa J. Dreier, Jessica L. HamiltonABSTRACT
Introduction
Adolescents engage in non‐suicidal self‐injury (NSSI) and social media more than any other age group. To understand the role of adolescents' subjective social media experiences in NSSI, this study examined the relationships between emotional responses to social media and NSSI urges and engagement.
Methods
Data were collected from two studies, which included a cross‐sectional study ( N = 408) and an 8‐week intensive‐longitudinal study ( N = 80) with ecological momentary assessment (3 surveys/day).
Results
The cross‐sectional study revealed that positive responses to social media were associated with the presence of NSSI urges across all time points and frequency of NSSI engagement in the past year and lifetime. Negative responses to social media were associated with the presence of NSSI urges and engagement across all time points and frequency of NSSI engagement in the past week, month, and year. The intensive‐longitudinal study revealed that positive responses to social media were not associated with daily NSSI urge intensity or presence of engagement, although negative responses to social media were associated with both daily NSSI urge intensity and presence of engagement.
Discussion
Interventions aiming to reduce adolescent NSSI may benefit from addressing ways to cope with negative social media experiences and promoting positive experiences.