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Joseph Babione, Julie Moebius, and Molly Whelan
The Link of Behavioral Connections
1022 North Prospect Street, P'.0. Box ,29 - Bowling Green, Olio 43402
Business phone: (419) 352.-5387
Self-mutilative behavior (SMB) refers to the deliberate damage to one's own body,without suicidal intent (e.g. cutting,
burning, scratching, hitting). Aside from the obvious health risks of' SMB, it can also disrupt therapy and be distracting
to other patients/clients who observe the behavior Crisis workers are often presented with individuals who perform
SMB. The behavior exhibited by such patients/clients can often be confusing to deal with, especially when working in a
crisis environment that frequently encounters suicidal individuals. There is evidence that the prevalence of SMB may be
on the rise, particularly among adolescent populations. This apparent rise of SMB, accompanied by the frequency of
SMB cases at crisis Centers makes an understanding of the behavior an all the more important asset of those providing
crisis intervention services.
Despite the wide body of psychological arid psychiatric literature on SMB, many experts agree there is still relatively
little known about the behavior. However, there are a variety of findings that can help to greatly increase one's general
knowledge of SMB. It is our firm belief that the crisis worker should be equipped with an understanding of SMB. Such
an understanding could potentially be advantageous in promoting educated. decision making and a greater empathetic
ability when working with this unique population. Locating accurate information on the, topic of SMB can be a daunting
task, as web sites and case studies can often present an inaccurate or ambiguous picture of the behavior.
Our presentation is based upon the scientific literature on the topic of SMB. The following topics pertaining to SMB
will be discussed, among others: defining and classifying SMB;, methods of SMB, the prevalence of SMB,
psychological disorders commonly observed among .individuals who engage in SMB, risk factors for SMB, the
functions served by SMB, the psychophysiology of SMB, suicide and SMB, perceptions of SMB, the future of SMB
research, and implications for intervention and crisis worker training. Aside from a presentation of the empirical
literature, case study examples will subsequently be used to illustrate many of our major topics. These case examples
will be extracted both from the literature axed personal experience, as a way to demonstrate how acts of SMB can both
parallel and contradict research findings. SMB is a complex behavior that appears to differentiate among individuals on
many levels, and working- with such, individuals requires .more than an understanding of what may be characteristic
among the statistical majority.
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