Nonsuicidal self-injury and its relation to personality traits in medical students.
J Nerv Ment Dis
; 202(4): 300-4, 2014 Apr.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-24647217
Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) has a high prevalence among the general undergraduate population, but as yet, no study has investigated the rate of NSSI among medical students despite the high levels of depression and suicidal ideation found in this population. Our study aimed to estimate the prevalence of NSSI and suicide attempts in German medical students and explore the associations between these behaviors and the five major personality traits. Seven hundred fourteen medical students (67% women; age range, 18-35 years; mean age, 23.1 years) participated in an online survey. We report a lifetime prevalence of 14.3% for NSSI and 1.5% for suicide attempt. The students with NSSI showed higher levels of neuroticism and openness to experience but lower levels of conscientiousness and extraversion on the NEO Five-Factor Inventory. Our results are in line with previous research from other countries regarding the prevalence of NSSI among students and its association with personality.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Personality
/
Students, Medical
/
Suicide, Attempted
/
Self-Injurious Behavior
Type of study:
Prevalence_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
En
Journal:
J Nerv Ment Dis
Year:
2014
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Germany
Country of publication:
United States