TY - JOUR

T1 - Psychosocial dynamics of suicidality and nonsuicidal self-injury

T2 - a digital linguistic perspective

AU - Entwistle, Charlotte

AU - Hoemann, Katie

AU - Nightingale, Sophie J.

AU - Boyd, Ryan L.

PY - 2025/7/8

Y1 - 2025/7/8

N2 - Self-harm—encompassing suicidality and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI)—presents a critical public health concern, particularly as it is a major risk factor of death by suicide. Understanding the psychosocial dynamics of self-harm is imperative. Accordingly, in a large-scale, naturalistic study, we leveraged modern language analysis methods to provide a comprehensive perspective on suicidality and NSSI, specifically in the context of borderline personality disorder (BPD), where self-harm is particularly prevalent. We utilised natural language processing techniques to analyse Reddit data (i.e., BPD forum posts) of 992 users with self-identified BPD (combined N posts = 66,786). The present findings generated further insight into the psychosocial dynamics of suicidality and NSSI, while also uncovering meaningful interactions between the online BPD community and these behaviours. By integrating advanced computational methods with psychological theory, our findings provide a nuanced understanding of self-harm, with implications for clinical practice, clinical and personality theory, and computational social science.

AB - Self-harm—encompassing suicidality and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI)—presents a critical public health concern, particularly as it is a major risk factor of death by suicide. Understanding the psychosocial dynamics of self-harm is imperative. Accordingly, in a large-scale, naturalistic study, we leveraged modern language analysis methods to provide a comprehensive perspective on suicidality and NSSI, specifically in the context of borderline personality disorder (BPD), where self-harm is particularly prevalent. We utilised natural language processing techniques to analyse Reddit data (i.e., BPD forum posts) of 992 users with self-identified BPD (combined N posts = 66,786). The present findings generated further insight into the psychosocial dynamics of suicidality and NSSI, while also uncovering meaningful interactions between the online BPD community and these behaviours. By integrating advanced computational methods with psychological theory, our findings provide a nuanced understanding of self-harm, with implications for clinical practice, clinical and personality theory, and computational social science.

U2 - 10.1038/s44184-025-00142-w

DO - 10.1038/s44184-025-00142-w

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 40629100

VL - 4

JO - npj Mental Health Research

JF - npj Mental Health Research

SN - 2731-4251

IS - 1

M1 - 28

ER -