Ryan Meldrum, Florida International University – Digital Self-Harm - The Academic Minute

"The mental health of kids and teens is in the spotlight. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools have resorted to remote teaching, leading kids to spend more time online. Now, “digital self-harm” is emerging among adolescents, and it may be increasing.

Digital self-harm involves someone anonymously posting negative and hurtful things about themselves online. In short, they are cyberbullying themselves.

To study its causes, two questions about digital self-harm were included as part of the 2019 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey, in which 10,000 Florida middle and high school students participated. We found that one in ten Florida students reported they engaged in digital self-harm in the past 12 months. We also found that getting bullied is associated with digital self-harm. So too are elevated levels of negative emotions like depression and anxiety that often result from bullying...."