Digital self-harm: an examination of the current literature with recommendations for future research

Abstract

Digital self-harm (DSH) is a relatively new form of virtual self-harm that occurs mostly in young people, and has been defined as both the act of cyberbullying oneself (Fictitious Online Victimisation; FOV), and engaging with online spaces in a way that is detrimental to one’s psychological wellbeing. In our overview of DSH we aim to provide an understanding of this little-known subject by offering a clarification of extant terms, summarising current findings, and presenting recommendations for future research. The prevalence of DSH in teenagers appears to approach that of physical self-harm, and the behaviour is more common amongst young people who are ostracised and/or victimised by their peers. The motivations for DSH are heterogeneous, but there is evidence that, like physical self-harm, it may be a means of affect regulation. However, more research is required to untangle the different forms of DSH and gain a sense of their occurrence in different populations and age groups, their varying causes, their relationship to physical self-harm, and the means by which they should be measured.