Citation

Fong ZH, Loh WNC, Fong YJ, Neo HLM, Chee TT. Clin. Child Psychol. Psychiatry 2021; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/13591045211055071

PMID

34866412

Abstract

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a worrying phenomenon that is prevalent among young people. Prior theorizing and empirical evidence suggest that parenting may play a role in the etiology of NSSI. Thus, we conducted a systematic review to examine the association between parenting behaviors and parenting styles with NSSI in young people.

METHODS: The following databases were searched for relevant articles in July 2020: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, and PsycINFO. Studies were included if they sampled young persons aged 10-25 years old with a history of NSSI, assessed parenting behavior or style, and tested associations between parenting and NSSI outcomes.

RESULTS: A total of 26 studies were included in this review. Among parenting behaviors, low parental support, high psychological control, and high reactive control were more consistently associated with NSSI. Conversely, the evidence for behavioral control is equivocal. There is some evidence that invalidating parenting is also associated with NSSI.

CONCLUSION: Consistent with the wider adolescent psychopathology literature, parenting that is perceived to be supportive, less psychologically controlling and reactive/punitive were less likely to be associated with NSSI. However, these results were largely based on child reports of parenting. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

Language: en

Keywords

adolescent; self-harm; non-suicidal self-injury; parents; parenting; self-injurious behavior