Non-suicidal self-injury as a predictor of stress-related social network use

Internet use continues to expand, and online communication has become more commonplace. Exploring how individuals use the internet may now be more important to assess than the degree of use. People who engage in non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) are an internet population of interest because research has suggested that online discussion of NSSI can serve as both a risk and protective factor related to engagement in the behaviour. The current study examined if NSSI could predict stress-related social network use, and whether online disinhibition or online social support would independently moderate the relationship. The study consisted of 120 individuals recruited from social networking sites. Participants provided self-report of their NSSI histories, degree of online disinhibition, perceived online social support, and frequency of stress-related social networking. NSSI alone did not predict stress-related social networking. However, both online disinhibition and online social support were found to independently moderate the relationship between NSSI and stress-related social networking. Individuals that engage in NSSI and experience either high levels of online disinhibition or high online social support may use internet social networks during times of stress more frequently. Exploring how stress-related social networking functions in the online NSSI population should be an area of continued research.