Acting Out: Examining The Experiences Of Adolescents Who Engage In Self-Harming Behavior In A Cultural Context

Ayse Ozata / Psychologist Psychotherapy Institute, Turkey ayseozata@outlook.com

Serim et al. (2009) defined self-harming behavior as ‘’Repetitive, intentional and intentional attempt made to one’s own family with animal tissue without the death wish of the individual group’’ (p.52). The act of self-harm is becom- ing more and more common in adolescents. It is predicted that self-harming behavior starts between the ages of 10- 24, is more common in adolescents, and its lifetime prevalence may increase up to 17.2% in adolescents. The general purpose of self-harming behavior; It is when an individual intentionally damages body tissue in order to transform overwhelming emotional pain into more acceptable physical pain. This condition can be seen with many disorders such as depression, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorder, conduct disorder. In addition, it is seen that adolescents who engage in self-harming behavior have difficulties in coping with negative emotions and problem-solving skills. It is thought that self-harm in adolescents is a strong predictor for depression, anxiety, child- hood traumas, difficulty in emotion regulation, test anxiety and suicide attempt (B. Kahraman & K. Çankaya, 2020).

In today’s societies, the differences between traditional structure and modern society, rural and urban life, individual behaviors and collective approach play an important role in the evaluation of self-harming behavior in adolescents. In action, it should not be forgotten that it is not possible for the individual to lead a life in which the subjectivity, life experiences play an effective and formative role, and the person completely separates himself from the cultural context. It is important for field experts working with self-harming adolescents to focus on the principles of “uncon- ditional acceptance and relationship building” in their work. It is necessary to carry out studies to receive medical treatment support in line with the needs in repetitive acts of harm. It is thought that it may be beneficial to deter- mine risk groups, to carry out monitoring studies, and to create school-family-student psychoeducational programs especially in schools. With the screening studies carried out in groups, it will be easier to prevent possible dangers by identifying students with negative emotions such as loneliness and helplessness, limited communication skills and low self-perception, and creating risk groups (Kılıç & Kocadaş, 2013).

In this study, self-harming behavior was evaluated through the experiences of the adolescents who committed the act in the cultural context; In this study, it is aimed to examine the causes, incidence, risk factors and problems in the lives of adolescents from different cultures in the literature of self-harming behavior in adolescents and to evaluate the contributions that can be made to field studies related to this phenomenon.

Keywords: adolescents, cultural context, subjectivity, anxiety, self-harming behavior