Young People's Disclosures of Self-harm
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Young People’s Experiences of Disclosing Self-Harm and Its Initial Management by CAMHS Trained School Professionals
IRAS ID
144123
Contact name
Lisa Nizinkiewicz
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
School of Psychology, Bangor University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
14/WA/1110, REC Ref
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 3 days
Research summary
The research aims to explore the experiences of young people who disclose self-harm to trained educational professionals within a school setting. Through the training, educational professionals have been taught about the nature of self-harm, and skills and knowledge on how to carry out a risk assessment and offer further support for the young people. This training is delivered by mental health professionals, including psychologists and nurses, from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Research shows that increasing numbers of young people are confiding in friends who then involve teachers and school staff in that disclosure. In addition, young people are choosing to disclose directly to an educational professional, and there is a growing frequency of teachers discovering self-harm. As schools are viewed as an influential and neutral environment, it has been argued that school-based interventions offer a promising role in successfully tackling self-harm. The study will help understand the young person's perspective of talking about their self-harm and, therefore, offer valuable insight to professionals working with young people who self-harm, and inform future training.
REC name
Wales REC 4
REC reference
14/WA/1110
Date of REC Opinion
8 Oct 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion