TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Sociological Approaches to Self-injury
JO  - Sociology compass
A1  - Taylor, J.D.
A1  - Ibañez, L.M.
SP  - 1005
EP  - 1014
VL  - 9
IS  - 12
N2  - This paper reviews the burgeoning sociological literature on non-suicidal self-injury, in which individuals intentionally harm themselves by cutting, burning, scratching, or smashing their body parts. We identify challenges to studying self-injury, such as conflicting definitions and categorizations. Comparing self-injury to other behaviors such as suicide, body modification, and self-mutilation, we assert that that non-suicidal self-injury deserves its own conceptual category. We explain how a critical sociological approach provides a valuable counterweight to medical and psychological studies of self-injury. In particular, this paper advances the deviance perspective. Finally, we highlight how technology has allowed self-injurers to build supportive communities in cyberspace, blurring the line between hidden and public acts. We conclude with suggestions for future directions in the study of self-injury. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1751-9020
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12327
ID  - ref1
ER  -