Depressivity, Parental Cohabitation, and Sex as Determinants of Physical Self-Harm During Adolescence

Objective: This study focuses on selected potential determinants of self-harm in adolescents of two age groups. The considered factors are depression, sex, and parental cohabitation. The aim of the study is to reveal the association between the mentioned factors and self-harm in younger and older adolescents. A secondary goal is to identify the prevalence of self-harm in two age groups. Self-harm is defined as the repeated occurrence of its physical forms. Methods: In the non-experimental research study, the respondents (N = 1285) were primary and secondary school pupils from Slovakia and made up two age cohorts (12–15 and 16–18 y). A battery of questionnaires consisted of the CDI, Self-Harm Inventory and a demographic questionnaire. Procedures of statistical analysis including the logistic regression were applied for data processing. Results: Depression as a risk factor for physical forms of self-harm was recognised in both age cohorts. In terms of sex as a predictor (girls), it proved to be a strong determinant of development of self-harm in the younger group. Conclusions: The results demonstrate the relevance of the need for a separate study of self-harm in boys and girls, as well as in the context of developmental peculiarities in adolescence.