Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Among Youth in an Underserved Area of the Southern United States: Exploring the Moderating Roles of Gender, Racial/Ethnic Background, and School-Level

Byline: Robert D. Latzman (1), Kim L. Gratz (1), John Young (2), Laurie J. Heiden (3), John D. Damon (3), Terry L. Hight (3) Keywords: Self-injury; Self-harm; Adolescents; Gender; Race; School-level Abstract: Despite the clinical relevance of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITB) among youth, little is known about the subset of youth most at-risk for SITB. This study examined the moderating roles of gender, racial/ethnic background, and school-level (and their interactions) on rates of SITB within a large (N = 2638, 52.2% female), ethnically-diverse sample of middle- and high-school youth in a relatively poor and underserved area of the Southern United States. Extending extant research in this area, findings indicated a significant interaction between gender and race for self-injurious behaviors, with African--American boys reporting higher rates than all other groups. Findings also indicated significant interactions between school-level and both gender and race for self-injurious thoughts. Whereas comparable levels of self-injurious thoughts were reported across middle- and high-schools for girls and African--American youth, the frequency of these thoughts was higher among both boys and White students in high-school (vs. middle-school). Results highlight the need for further research on SITB among diverse youth in underserved areas. Author Affiliation: (1) Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State St., Jackson, MS, 39216, USA (2) Department of Psychology, University of Mississippi, University, MS, USA (3) Mississippi Children's Home Services--CARES School, Jackson, MS, USA Article History: Registration Date: 01/10/2009 Received Date: 30/07/2009 Accepted Date: 01/10/2009 Online Date: 16/10/2009