Identity throught adolescence and young adulthood 3

Question 1

Non-suicidal self-injury

Answer 1

Behavior involving deliberate and direct injury to one’s own body surface:

which is socially unaccepted

and without suicidal intent

Question 2

Typical NSSI acts

Answer 2

Cutting oneself
Scratching oneself
Hair pulling
Bruising oneself
Burning oneself

Question 3

Functional perspective on NSSI

Answer 3

Communication: NSSI as a symptom of psychosocial problems

Coping: NSSI as a way of dealing with psychosocial problems

Question 4

NSSI and identity

Answer 4

Identity plays an important role in NSSI emergence and maintenance

NSSI symptomatic of identity confusion or a lack of synthesis and could provide a pseudo-identity

Question 5

Associations identity statuses and NSSI?

Answer 5

Differential associations linking

identity to past/current NSSI:

Past NSSI

Higher odds of being in

moratorium and lower odds of being in achievement

Developmental delay in identity?

Current NSSI
Higher odds of being in troubled diffusion

NSSI symptomatic of identity distress/rumination?

Question 6

Bidirectionality NSSI

Answer 6

Identity diffusion
Sever distress→ affect regulation → NSSi

Identity diffusion → Loss of self → NSSI

Identity diffusion ↔ NSSI

NSSI→ NSSI central to onese identiy → negative identity lack of identity work → identity diffusion

Question 7

Identity in Eating disorder

Answer 7

Similar to NSSI, ED can originate from impairments in identity

ED may function as a mechanism by which individuals avoid dealing with important identity issues

Focus on body image as a way to compensate for inner diffusion

Failing to engage in introspective processes may prevent or delay patients with ED from establishing a personal identity

Question 8

Identity proccesses, Identity statuses and ED

Answer 8

Patients with an ED score significantly lower on CM, IC, EB and significantly higher on RE

Patients with ED overrepresented in moratorium, diffusion and disorder statuses

Role of identity problems/disturbance towards ED

Question 9

Cross lagged analysis ED

Answer 9

Identity synthesis
Negatively predicts Boulima and anorexia over time

Identity confusion
Positivly predicts boulimia

Question 10

The body as a targer

Answer 10

Clinicians should be attentive to complex interplay between identity and ED / NSSI when treating adolescents

The body as a way of communicating and dealing with identity issues

Close bi-directional association linking body dissatisfaction and identity synthesis/confusion

Therapeutic focus on alternative ways of communication/ expression (what are individuals trying to reveal/communicate?)

Adolescents with identity confusion are especially vulnerable to adopt a maladaptive search for a clear sense of self and to use suboptimal sources of self-definition.