Body Piercing and Self-Mutilation: A Multifaceted Relationship

Abstract

See, stats, and : https : / / www . researchgate . net / publication / 267330181 Body - mutilation : A multifaceted ARTICLE DOI : 10 . 11648 / j . ajap . 20140304 . 14 READS 80 2 , INCLUDING : Erich Medical 109 , 692 SEE All - text , letting . Available : Erich Retrieved : 07 Abstract : Goal was to examine the connection between piercings and self - mutilation and the practice of self - piercing . Participants (n=140) completed an anonymous online survey consisting of a 54 - item questionnaire and a standardized personality test . All respondents were members of internet communities specialized on piercings . The majority of participants (77 . 1%) were female , 22 . 9% were male . The mean age of the group was 24 . 7 years (range : 16 - 57 years) . Participants had an average of 8 . 9 piercings . More than half (57 . 9%) of participants were between 15 and 20 years old when they acquired their first piercing . The most common piercings reported were facial (in 82 . 9% of participants) , ear cartilage (in 67 . 9% of participants) , nipple (in 48 . 6% of participants) and genital piercings (in 45 . 0% of participants) . Participants were asked to complete the NEO - FFI personality inventory , which is a tool used to measure the personality factors Conscientiousness , Agreeableness , Extraversion , Openness and Neuroticism . Although all of the NEO - FFI results were within the average norm , significant differences between the participants with / without self - injury were found regarding the T - Scores for Neuroticism and Agreeableness . Thirty - one percent of the participants reported a history of self - mutilation . Those with a history of self - mutilation did not have more piercings than their peers . Half of these individuals described a decrease in auto - aggressive behavior since having acquired piercings , twenty - five percent claim to have ceased self - injurious behavior . The incidence of self - mutilation appears to be higher among pierced individuals than among the general public . Participants who had engaged in self - injury had significantly more often self - pierced . Piercings and self - piercings may serve as substitute behavior for self - mutilation in some individuals .