Self-Injury Experiences of Middle-Aged Men: A Phenomenological Study

This phenomenological study investigated the self-injury experiences of middle-aged men. Using a phenomenological approach, this study analyzed the self-injury experiences of men who began harming themselves during midlife. The objective was to uncover the practical structure and meaning of these experiences in order to discuss ways to prevent self-injury in middle-aged men and to develop specific interventions in terms of counseling studies. This study involved nine middle-aged men with self-injury experiences. The researchers conducted one-on-one in-depth interviews with the participants and constructed phenomenological texts. The texts were analyzed using the phenomenological data analysis procedure developed by Colaizzi (1978). The results of the data analysis are as follows. This study constructed 52 meanings from the participants, which were categorized according to 18 sub-components. Each of these had six-components : “indirect delivery of message showing the desire to live,” “painkiller for psychological pain,” “relief of tension,” “sudden reenactment of suppressed wounds,” “nullifying of the present and future,” and “fixation of distorted coping strategies.” The study results showed that the participation of middle-aged men was a paradoxical method of suppressing and healing suicidal impulses, and their messages of self-injury expressed the will to communicate with the world. Furthermore, self-injury in middle age is not uniquely a midlife phenomenon but is triggered by negative phenomena accumulated throughout life coinciding with a midlife crisis. In terms of counseling studies, this study discussed and suggested counseling approaches and specific techniques to prevent self-injury and suicide among middle-aged men based on the research findings.