Cyber Self-Harm

What Is Cyber Self-Harm?

Cyber self-harm, or digital self-harm, is a growing problem that is especially prominent among teenagers, involving abusive messages and insults directed by the sender at themselves, often through anonymous social media platforms or with the use of anonymous social media accounts.

The problem of cyber self-harm is not as widespread as cyberbullying or harassment, but it is growing and can lead to devastating consequences.

The most common platforms for cyber self-harm are those where users can send anonymous comments, which makes it easier to direct insults toward your own profile without the complication of creating fake accounts, although some people will take the time to do this. This could include anonymous comment sites such as Sarahah, AskFM, Yik Yak, and Whisper, which have recently become very popular among young people in particular.

The most widely reported social media platforms that perpetuate digital self-harm are AskFM and Sarahah, as well as Tumblr and Formspring, which also allow anonymous comments. The 'honesty app' Sarahah has been removed from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store following widespread concern over cyberbullying and the misuse of the platform.

The Risks of Cyber Self-Harm

Cyber self-harm is not necessarily linked to physical self-harm but may act as a catalyst for physical harm. Digital self-harm might feel as addictive to some people as physical self-harm and its related actions of cutting, burning, or hair-pulling.

The complex combination of public humiliation, shame, and sympathy makes for a difficult cycle to break. Cyber self-harm can lead to low self-esteem, depression, eating disorders, and suicide.

An Example of Cyber Self-Harm

Hannah Smith was described as an "intelligent, bright, clever, and bubbly" girl. She was found dead in her bedroom by her sister. Her family believed her to be the victim of an intense and vicious cyberbullying campaign on the social media platform AskFM, during which she was called a "slut," told to drink bleach, and encouraged to kill herself.

Hannah's family called for the owners of the site to be held accountable, and AskFM's founders said they would name the anonymous trolls who targeted Hannah. After an investigation into her account activity, they found that, while there were a handful of messages from trolls, 98% of the hateful messages were posted by the teenager and aimed at herself.

Police scrutiny of her laptop and IP addresses revealed the same evidence: that Hannah had been posting the messages. The teen had been a target for bullies offline, having her eczema mocked and her coat glued to a chair while at school.

How Common Is Cyber Self-Harm?

Feelings of self-hatred can be common among teenagers and young people. This kind of anguish has been traditionally written in diaries, journals, and poetry and is characteristically associated with emotional young people.

The rise and popularity of the internet as well as social media platforms mean that self-hatred manifesting itself as digital self-harm can reach a much wider audience.

Research on cyber self-harm is limited. The Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center found that around 15% of 18-year-olds surveyed in both 2012 and 2013 had "falsely posted a cruel remark against themselves, or cyberbullied themselves, during high school."

Among children who do admit to bullying others, the rate is as high as 32%. The study was authored by Professor Elizabeth Englander, who was vocal about her surprise at the findings.

Why Would Someone Cyber Self-Harm?

As we see the problem of cyber self-harm growing, it has started to get the attention of academics and researchers who are interested in finding out more about the psychology behind digital self-harm. Danah Boyd, Principal Researcher at Microsoft, has shared her thoughts on the seriousness of the problem:

"It's really important to highlight that digital self-harm is probably not the explanation behind the majority of negative anonymous comments out there, but the fact that it exists at all should be a warning to us all, and especially to parents who are trying to address bullying in their households."

Boyd has looked into this "self-trolling" behavior and identified three key reasons why a teenager might want to self-harm online:

A cry for help: Young people may act in this way to gain attention from parents and friends when they feel emotionally vulnerable.

Looking cool: Some teens may try to influence their social status as someone who is popular enough to gain negative comments from jealous 'haters.'

Triggering compliments: Low self-esteem or worries about their identity may lead a young person to insult themselves anonymously in order to encourage their friends to 'jump in to say nice things in response to the negative commentary.'

Others agree with the assessment that teenagers in particular might seek to provoke positive comments through abusive ones. Dr. Emma Short, co-director at the National Centre for Cyberstalking Research, has been vocal about the self-abuse that she has experienced on the social media platform Tumblr.

"I was astonished the first time I typed the word 'hate' into Tumblr. I expected to see a lot of hateful comments about other people. Actually, the vast majority of users said they hated themselves. And it's a way of perhaps seeking approval for those feelings.

"Research has shown that if someone posts a nasty comment online, around 30% of people will join in with the bullying, but about 60% of people will then attack the troll and defend the person the nasty comment is about. That is what a lot of these teens may be seeking."

Various studies have indicated that girls and boys digitally self-harm for different reasons. When asked why they engaged in cyber self-harm, boys were more likely to put their behavior down to a prank or that they were doing it to 'get attention' while girls were more likely to attribute the behavior to a problem with depression or mental health.

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