Citation

Roe-Sepowitz D. Crim. Behav. Ment. Health 2007; 17(5): 312-321.

Affiliation

Arizona State University, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/cbm.665

PMID

18004735

Abstract

Background Research on self-mutilating behaviour and incarcerated adults has found that nearly 50% of people in prison participated in it (Holley and Alborleda-Florez, 1988). This is an enormous liability for the criminal justice system as well as a human concern.Aims/hypotheses The research question for this study was to explore whether a history of childhood abuse in a sample of incarcerated women would increase their likelihood of self-mutilation.Methods Participants were 256 female inmates from five prisons in a large southern state who volunteered to attend a 12-week trauma and abuse psychosocial intervention group. The participants were evaluated for childhood abuse, criminal history, risk-taking behaviour and self-mutilation. Data are presented regarding individual, criminal, abuse, family and risk-taking behaviours comparing self-mutilators (n = 109) with non-self-mutilators (n = 147).Results The self-mutilation group was more likely to report higher rates of emotional, sexual and physical abuse and on clinical significance scales of anxiety, depression, dissociation, impaired self-reference, anger, tension reduction and intrusive experiences. The self-mutilation group was also younger and was more often Caucasian. The results of the regression model suggest that a history of suicide attempts, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, bingeing and vomiting and impaired self-reference are predictors of self-mutilation.Conclusions/implications for practice Recommendations and implications for practice are discussed.

Language: en