Motivational abnormalities in self-harm
Research type
Research Study
Full title
iMAGine: Motivational Abnormalities Guiding self-harm
IRAS ID
263031
Contact name
Martina Di Simplicio
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Imperial College London
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 6 months, 31 days
Research summary
What cognitive processes maintain self-harm behaviour in 16-25 year olds?
Self-harm is a common problem with estimations as high as 20% of young people self-harming at any one time. In some people the frequency and severity of self-harm has been shown to increase over time, and self-harm is also the strongest predictor of future suicide. The efficacy of current interventions for self-harm could be improved if they more effectively targeted the underlying psychological mechanisms that serve to maintain the behaviour. However, as little is known about these processes, this study aims to identify the psychological mechanisms that potentially increase the risk of repetitive self-harm in young people aged 16-25.
The first part of the study aims to use computer-based tasks to gain a better understanding of what motivates young people to self-harm and whether this contributes to repetition of self-harm. We will investigate whether greater sensitivity to the rewards of self-harm (e.g. relief from difficult emotions), and differences in learning from rewards and punishments, are associated with more recent and frequent self-harm behaviour.
The second part of the study will expand on research questions from Part One. We will use computer-based tasks to further investigate:
i) the impact of negative emotions on motivation to self-harm, by inducing a negative mood (using a computer task that simulates social exclusion);
ii) whether mental imagery techniques (visualisation) can reduce motivation to self-harm.REC name
South Central - Oxford C Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/SC/0275
Date of REC Opinion
12 Jun 2019
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion