Out of the blue: Untangling the association between impulsivity and planning in self-harm



Rawlings, Jodie, Shevlin, Mark, Corcoran, Rhiannon ORCID: 0000-0001-8900-9199, Morriss, Richard and Taylor, Peter James
(2015) Out of the blue: Untangling the association between impulsivity and planning in self-harm. JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS, 184. pp. 29-35.

This is the latest version of this item.

[img] Text
impulsive revised.docx - Unspecified
Access to this file is embargoed until Unspecified.

Download (57kB)

Abstract

<h4>Background</h4>Planned and unplanned acts of self-harm may have distinct clinical and psychological correlates. Trait impulsivity is one factor that might be expected to determine whether self-harm is planned. Research so far has focussed on suicide attempts and little is known about how individuals engaging in planned and unplanned acts of self-harm differ. The aim of the current study was to examine how individuals who report planned self-harm, unplanned self-harm, and no self-harm differ in terms of impulsivity and affective symptoms (depression, anxiety, and activated mood).<h4>Method</h4>An online survey of University students (n = 1350) was undertaken including measures of impulsivity, affective symptoms and self-harm. Analyses made use of a multinomial logistic regression model with affective and cognitive forms of impulsivity estimated as latent variables.<h4>Results</h4>Trait affective impulsivity, but not cognitive, was a general risk factor for whether self-harm occurred. There was no evidence of differences between planned and unplanned self-harm. Affective symptoms of depression and anxiety mediated the relationship between affective impulsivity and self-harm.<h4>Limitations</h4>The study was cross-sectional, relied on a student sample which may not generalise to other populations.<h4>Conclusions</h4>Trait affective impulsivity is associated with self-harm but it appears to be mediated by depression and anxiety symptoms. The exact relationships between trait affective impulsivity, depression, anxiety and self-harm require further longitudinal research in clinical populations but might lead to improved risk assessment and new therapeutic approaches to self-harm.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Self-harm, Impulsivity, Depression, Anxiety, Planning
Subjects: ?? RC0321 ??
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 04 Jan 2016 09:25
Last Modified: 15 Dec 2022 15:40
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2015.05.042
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/2044125

Available Versions of this Item