Self-burning versus self-cutting: Patterns and implications of self-mutilation; a preliminary study of differences between self-cutting and self-burning in a Japanese juvenile detention center

Abstract

The purpose of the present paper was to examine the differences in clinical features between self-cutters and self-burners, to clarify clinical implications of self-mutilating behaviors other than self-cutting. Subjects were 201 delinquent adolescents consecutively entering a Japanese juvenile detention center from February 2003 to March 2003. The subjects were assessed using a self-reporting questionnaire to evaluate self-mutilation, traumatic events, and problematic behaviors. Beck Depression Inventory-2 (BDI-2) and Adolescent Dissociative Experience Scale (A-DES) were also tested. Subjects were classified into four groups according to self-mutilating behaviors: non-self-cutting or -burning (NSCB), self-cutting (SC), self-burning (SB), and self-cutting and self-burning (SCB). The questionnaire answers and scores of the BDI-2 and A-DES were compared between the four groups. Of 201 subjects, 33 (16.4%) had cut their wrists or forearms at least once, and 72 of 201 (35.8%) had burned themselves at least once. The SC and SCB group had traumatic events, problematic behavior, and various types of self-mutilating behavior more frequently than the other two groups. The SCB group reported additional types of self-mutilating behavior more than the SC group. The SCB group also experienced multiple body customizations compared to the SC group, and exhibited higher scores on the BDI-2 and A-DES than the other three groups. The self-burning without self-cutting may have limited clinical implications. However, the self-burning with self-cutting may suggest depression and dissociation, as well as possible indication of self-mutilating behavior.