This project includes a needs assessment and the development of a workshop designed to teach high school staff about the topic of self-injurious behavior. This project also included the conducting of a needs assessment with high school staff in the West Valley area to determine their understanding of self-injurious behavior. Participants included high school administrators, teachers, school psychologists, and school nurses. These participants were surveyed to assess their knowledge of the causes, symptoms, and treatments of SIB. Myths, fears, and stereotypes associated with this disorder were also assessed.
Findings from these surveys indicated that school staff were unclear regarding all issues involved in self-injurious behavior and there was a need for and an interest in participating in a self-injury workshop. The information gathered from the literature and these surveys was used to design a workshop to increase this group's awareness of self-injurious behavior in adolescents. This workshop also provides information such as the prevalence of self-mutilation among adolescence and co-morbidity. In addition, the workshop is designed to help school officials become aware of their own attitudes and understand the importance of providing a safe and comfortable atmosphere for students and staff when dealing with this problem.
Self-injurious behavior is the topic of this project. Definitions and classifications of self-mutilation vary and do not understand exactly what this behavior includes, however there is a consensus that self-injurious behavior includes the deliberate damaging of body tissue with no suicidal intent and it is used interchangeably with self-mutilation behaviors (Nock & Prinstein, 2004; Ross & health, 2002). It is estimated that up to 61% of adolescents in a psychiatric inpatient setting and up to 39% of those not hospitalized participate in self-injurious behaviors (Nock & Prinstein, 2004). Self-in...