@article{ref1,
title="Adolescent victimization and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors: a genetically sensitive cohort study",
journal="Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry",
year="2019",
author="Baldwin, Jessie R. and Arseneault, Louise and Caspi, Avshalom and Moffitt, Terrie E. and Fisher, Helen L. and Odgers, Candice L. and Ambler, Antony and Houts, Renate M. and Matthews, Timothy and Ougrin, Dennis and Richmond-Rakerd, Leah S. and Takizawa, Ryu and Danese, Andrea",
volume="58",
number="5",
pages="506-513",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: Victimized adolescents have elevated risk of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors. However, poor understanding of causal and non-causal mechanisms underlying this observed risk limits the development of interventions to prevent premature death among adolescents. We tested whether pre-existing family-wide and individual vulnerabilities account for victimized adolescents' elevated risk of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors. <br><br>METHOD: Participants were 2,232 British children followed from birth to age 18 as part of the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study. Adolescent victimization (maltreatment, neglect, sexual victimization, family violence, peer/sibling victimization, cyber-victimization, and crime victimization) was assessed through interviews with participants and co-informant questionnaires at the age 18 assessment. Suicidal ideation, self-harm, and suicide attempt in adolescence were assessed through interviews with participants at age 18. <br><br>RESULTS: Victimized adolescents had an increased risk of suicidal ideation (Odds Ratio [OR]= 2.40, 95% CI=2.11-2.74), self-harm (OR=2.38, 95% CI=2.10-2.69), and suicide attempt (OR=3.14, 95% CI=2.54-3.88). Co-twin control and propensity-score matching analyses showed that these associations were largely accounted for pre-existing familial and individual vulnerabilities, respectively. Over and above their prior vulnerabilities, victimized adolescents still showed a modest elevation in risk for suicidal ideation (OR=1.36, 95%CI=1.06-1.76) and self-harm (OR=1.50, 95% CI=1.18-1.91), but not suicide attempt (OR=1.28, 95% CI=0.83-1.98). <br><br>CONCLUSION: Risk for self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in victimized adolescents is only partly explained by the experience of victimization. Pre-existing vulnerabilities account for a large proportion of the risk. Therefore, effective interventions to prevent premature death in victimized adolescents should not only target the experience of victimization but also address pre-existing vulnerabilities.<br><br>Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0890-8567",
doi="10.1016/j.jaac.2018.07.903",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2018.07.903"
}