Year: 2004 Source: MJA, v.181, no.3, (2 August 2004), p.140-144 SIEC No: 20040946

The authors sought to determine the prevalence & types of deliberate self-harm (DSH) in adolescents, & associated factors, using a cross-sectional questionnaire study of 3757 Australian high school students. 233 students met the criteria for DSH in the previous 12 months, with DSH more prevalent in females than males. The main methods were self-cutting & overdosing with medication. Factors associated with DSH included similar behaviours in friends or family, coping by self-blame, & self-prescribing of medications. (25 refs)