Development and Validation of the Self-Harm Reasons Questionnaire

Understanding the reasons for self‐harm (SH) may be paramount for the identification and treatment of SH behavior. Presently, the psychometric properties for SH reason questionnaires are generally unknown or tested only in non‐inpatient samples. Existing inpatient measures may have limited generaliz...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Suicide & life-threatening behavior 2008-02, Vol.38 (1), p.104-115
Main Authors: Lewis, Stephen P., Santor, Darcy A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Adults
Aging (Individuals)
Behavior
Biological and medical sciences
College Students
Correlation
Depression (Psychology)
Factor Analysis
Female
Humans
Male
Measures (Individuals)
Medical sciences
Ontario
Patients
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychometrics
Psychometrics - instrumentation
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Risk Factors
Sample size
Self Destructive Behavior
Self Disclosure (Individuals)
Self-Injurious Behavior - etiology
Students - psychology
Studies
Suicide
Surveys and Questionnaires - standards
Symptoms (Individual Disorders)
Test Construction
Undergraduate Students
Universities
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Summary:Understanding the reasons for self‐harm (SH) may be paramount for the identification and treatment of SH behavior. Presently, the psychometric properties for SH reason questionnaires are generally unknown or tested only in non‐inpatient samples. Existing inpatient measures may have limited generalizability and do not examine SH apart from an explicit intent to die. The present study examined a newly developed, self‐report measure of reason for self‐harm. The Self‐Harm Reasons Questionnaire (SHRQ) was administered to 143 undergraduate students. Results indicated that SH reasons covaried in meaningful and internally consistent ways, with subgroups of SH reasons correlating with hypothesized concomitants of SH, such as depressive symptoms. Findings have implications for prevention and intervention and the SHRQ offers a new, albeit preliminary, means by which to examine SH reasons in a non‐inpatient sample.
ISSN:0363-0234
1943-278X
DOI:10.1521/suli.2008.38.1.104