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We probably all know someone who self-injures. They cut, burn and brand themselves, sometimes breaking their own bones.
Through their longitudinal study over the past 10 years, Peter and Patti Adler have published a book, titled “The Tender Cut,” surrounding the issue of self-injury as a non-suicidal action.
Peter is a professor of sociology at DU, and Patti is a professor of sociology at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Peter was first introduced to the topic of self-injury after one of his students at a university told him about her cutting.
At the time, however, Peter thought of the incident as bizarre and isolated, until a later incident sparked his interest.
“In 1996, a friend of the family, a teenager with whom I had a close relationship, confided in me about her cutting and did not want her parents to know, coming to me as a confidante for advice and support,” said Peter. “From there, Patti and I became interested in the phenomenon, wondering how widespread it was, and began to ask our students and others if they had heard about it.”
The Adlers’ study is one of the largest, non-clinical studies of a population of self-injurers, consisting of 150 interviews, as well as over 30,000 Internet posts in chat rooms and online communities covering the subject.
“I want people to know that, while some cutters are suffering from serious psychological problems, and almost all of which are depressed or having problems coping with life when they cut, this is not a pre-suicidal behavior for me,” said Peter. “It sometimes may be a call for help, but most often it is a way to cope with their lives in a way that they see as hurting no one else except for themselves.”
Peter explains how the family friend who once confided in him is now a successful lawyer and married with children, who no longer cuts but looks back on that period in her life as her own personal way of coping.
“Our book, we hope, gives a ‘voice’ to these people, many of whom go on to lead productive lives, growing out of cutting, and look back at it as a time when they needed this escape to deal with the difficult issues they face,” said Peter.
The Adlers cite the Internet as a factor in the expansion of self-injury popularity in recent years. The Internet created a community for self-injurers to talk with one another, learn about self-injury and its ‘various forms as well as make it a common activity, particularly among high school-aged students.
“It should be noted that most people heard about it from word-of-mouth or from the media, who sensationalized the behavior, not the Internet,” said Peter, explaining that the Internet did not create the hysteria surrounding self-injury.
For more information on the Adlers’ blog, “The Deviance Society,” visit www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-deviance-society. “”The Tender Cut”” is available on Amazon.
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