Just how prevalent is self-injury among children under age 12?  Do the types and methods they use differ from those who self-injure at other ages? What about the reasons they give for self-injuring? In this episode, Dr. Imke Baetens and PhD candidate Lisa Van Hove from Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Brussels University) discuss the prevalence of self-injury and self-harm among children under age 12 and how parents can talk to their young children about the behavior. 

To learn more about the International Consortium on Self-Injury in Educational Settings (ICSES), visit www.icsesgroup.org. Learn more about Dr. Baetens at www.brucc.be/en/imke-baetens. To see her publications, click here, and to learn more about her work at the Brussels University Consultation Center (BUCC), visit www.brucc.be/en. Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn here. Below are some of their research referenced in this episode: 

1. Baetens, I., Decruy, C., Vatandoost, S., Vanderhaegen, B., & Kiekens, G. (2020). School-based prevention targeting non-suicidal self-injury: A pilot study. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11, 437.
2. Van Hove, L., Baetens, I., Simundic, A., Bloom, E., & Heath, N. (in press). NSSI in elementary school children. In E. E. Lloyd-Richardson, I. Baetens & J. Whitlock (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Nonsuicidal Self-Injury. Oxford University Press.

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

The Psychology of Self-Injury podcast has been rated #5 by Feedspot in their "Best 20 Clinical Psychology Podcasts" and by Welp Magazine in their "20 Best Injury Podcasts."