Exploring Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Online Activity: A Content Analysis of Reddit Posts

Online NSSI activity is a growing phenomenon among many internet-based forums, including Reddit. We sought to explore both the purpose of posting in a subreddit specific to NSSI and characteristics of these posts. We employed deductive content analysis to examine eight a priori categories among a sample of 400 original Reddit posts. Results indicated that the most common purpose for posting was to share a negative event followed by seeking the answer to an NSSI-related question, then a medical question. Cutting was the most commonly mentioned NSSI method in the posts (44.2%) and 42.3% of posts indicated that the poster was currently engaging in NSSI. Addiction language was present in 25.3% of posts and suicidality language in 8.5%. More posters described NSSI as a problem than as a solution, yet the percentage of posts expressing the intention to stop engaging in NSSI was about the same as those expressing no intention to stop. Among posts that disclosed the motive for NSSI, emotion regulation was the most prevalent. Significant positive correlations were found between conceptualizing NSSI as a problem and intention to stop. Additionally, engaging in NSSI for the purpose of emotion regulation was significantly, positively correlated with the use of addiction language in posts. Implications for counselors are discussed.