Self-harm as a means to manage the public and private selves: A qualitative study of help seeking by adults
Adults ( n = 25) completed online free text boxes about their self-harming behaviour. Thematic analysis identified three dominant themes: ‘managing the private self’, ‘managing the public self’ and ‘moving on’. Transcending these themes was the notion of thresholds of change. Self-harm enables peop...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2015-09-01
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| Series: | Health Psychology Open |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/2055102915605987 |
| Summary: | Adults ( n = 25) completed online free text boxes about their self-harming behaviour. Thematic analysis identified three dominant themes: ‘managing the private self’, ‘managing the public self’ and ‘moving on’. Transcending these themes was the notion of thresholds of change. Self-harm enables people to manage both their private and public selves. When thresholds of change are surpassed, the public self communicates a need for help. Self-harm exists within a precarious balance of well-being and can be a form of self-care. Help seeking is instigated when this balance is disrupted and continued if it offers a better form of self-management than the individual’s own self-harming behaviour. |
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| ISSN: | 2055-1029 |