Deviant behavior in adolescents: the role of non-suicidal self-harm, depression and the desire to find new sensations

BACKGROUND. Although previous studies have shown that deviant predisposition is an important risk factor for non-suicidal self-harming behavior, the reasons for this relationship are unclear.

AIM. The purpose of the study is to identify the features of deviant behavior, the level of depression and the desire to search for new sensations in adolescents with non-suicidal self-harming behavior.

MATERIALS AND METHODS. At the first stage, 154 adolescents with a history of self-harming behavior were examined. At the second stage, using the Colombian Scale of Severity of suicidal Intentions, 149 adolescents with only non-suicidal self-harming behavior were selected from the entire sample (31.50% of them boys and 68.50% of girls, the average age was 16.35 years; SD=1.15). The study excluded 5 adolescents who had self-harmed for suicidal purposes. Columbia Scale of severity of suicidal intentions, Razuvaeva Suicide Risk Questionnaire, Bass–Perry Aggression Level Questionnaire, Diagnostic questionnaire to identify the propensity to various forms of deviant behavior for students of general education institutions, A. Beck’s depression questionnaire, Diagnosis of the needs of new sensations by M. Zuckerman, methods of descriptive statistics, r-Spearman correlation analysis.

RESULTS. Persons prone to aggressive behavior in general are more likely to show inconsistency, demonstrativeness, poorly developed time perspective and uniqueness. Teenagers who have a poor idea of the future (a weak time perspective) are characterized by a high level of general aggressiveness, hostility, physical aggression, as well as a desire to search for sensations. Adolescents with depressive syndrome with feelings of insolvency, helplessness, are prone to deviant behavior in general, and to the search for new sensations.

CONCLUSION. The correlation analysis revealed statistically significant correlations of aggression, autoaggression, deviant behavior, desire for sensation seeking and depression in adolescents. The results of our study provide the basis for an intervention aimed at preventing and reducing adolescent NSSP and deviant behavior in general.