Self-harm study finds social media can be a space for emotional expression

New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London, in partnership with YoungMinds, has explored the image-posting habits on social media of young people who self-harm.

The study, published in BMJ Open and jointly funded by both us and the Medical Research Council, suggests a complex and nuanced relationship between young people and social media use in the periods before and after episodes of self-harm.

Previous research has suggested that social media could lead to the reinforcement and encouragement of self-harm behaviours, through the sharing and viewing of self-harm related content online.

This is the first real-world study to analyse what young people post during periods of self-harm.

The researchers recruited a sub-sample of 20 participants aged 13-25 from the ‘Social media, Smartphone use and Self-harm in Young People’ (3S-YP) study – led by one of our funded researchers, Professor Rina Dutta. These young people had self-harmed during a 6-month follow up period and had provided access to their social media data.

Young people were meaningfully involved across all key stages of the study to ensure the research was designed and delivered in a way that felt acceptable and relevant. Their involvement enabled researchers to gain insight into lived experience of mental health difficulties and self-harm, and the role that social media plays in shaping these experiences.

The Youth Participation Team at YoungMinds, said, “This research was incredibly meaningful. It has given our youth advisors a genuine opportunity to shape research through lived experience and to explore the complex ways that social media, wellbeing and self-expression intersect in their lives.

"The project not only amplified young people’s voices but also helped them feel valued as contributors to research that could support and inform better understanding and care for others.”

We recently spoke to a young person who participated in Rina’s study, Rebecca (age 24), a YoungMinds Youth Advisor. Reflecting on her involvement in the research, Rebecca said:

“Studies like this are important because they raise awareness of how social media can impact young people’s mental health, both positively and negatively.

“Research can influence how professionals, schools and even the social media platforms themselves approach digital wellbeing. The more evidence we have, the better we can design support systems, set healthy boundaries, and educate others in ways that are based on real experiences.”

In their study, Rina, Dr Amanda Bye, and their team looked at posting behaviour across a 14-day window around both self-reported and clinically recorded self-harm episodes.

None of the images investigated included explicit visual presentations of self-harm. In cases where self-harm was referenced, it was mentioned in text and largely with the purpose of encouraging others in distress to seek help.

Importantly, participants were found to post fewer images on the day they self-harmed, suggesting that some people may temporarily withdraw from posting on social media during periods of distress. There was also evidence of masking or downplaying distress. Taken together, these findings may relate to concerns around being stigmatised, or simply reflect improvements in platform moderation.

Rina, senior author of the study, explains, “Self-harming in young people is very often a sign of distress. They are people in need of support not only from medical professionals, but also from family and friends.

“While there are many concerning examples of social media having a negative impact on young people, our study found that – for this particular group – it also offered a way to express difficult emotions and to encourage others experiencing similar difficulties to seek help.”

The results indicate that social media platforms could serve as spaces for self-expression and connecting with other young people about both positive and challenging emotions.

The findings also highlight that changes in posting patterns during periods of self-harm may reflect a temporary withdrawal from a young person’s curated online identity. These shifts could form part of a larger set of indirect indicators - combined with other digital activity data - that could inform future prevention and intervention strategies.

Amanda, the study’s first author, adds, “Our findings highlight the diverse ways that young people use social media during periods of self-harm and the need to look beyond explicit content when considering digital indicators of risk.

“While much of the current debate rightly focuses on the harms of social media, our findings show that it may also offer potential benefits that are particularly meaningful for young people experiencing mental health difficulties. Recognising such variation - and empowering young people to lead these discussions - is essential if we are to develop strategies that effectively address the risks, while also considering how to harness these benefits."

Read the full study here >>

This article discusses suicide and/or self-harm, so please read the content with care. If you are feeling suicidal, know that help is available. Contact the Samaritans on 116 123 if you need emotional support. If you feel you are in immediate danger to yourself, call 999.