Self-Harm in Prison

Abstract

This study sought to determine whether self-harm incidents classified as manipulative would also be classified as low suicidal intent and low risk to life. Seventy-four prisoners who had self-harmed were interviewed within 3 days of the incident. Measures were obtained of the degree of suicidal intent (Suicide Intent Scale), the degree to which the incident posed a risk to life (assessed by medical staff), and the principal motive for self-harming (open-ended question). The data did not support the notion that manipulators and suicide attempters are mutually exclusive groups. Only 6 of the 18 participants who reported manipulative motives displayed low suicidal intent, and 3 of the 18 enacted self-harm that posed at least a moderate risk to life. Prison staff cannot assume that prisoners who appear manipulative or report manipulative motives were not suicidal at the time of self-harming.