Addressing the Issue of Self-Harm Among Youths in Australia

Sociology
Community, policy and change
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Sociology
Introduction
Self-harm is an issue that has been increasing at a really alarming rate amongst Australian
youths. This write-up will present a pathway that is going to address the issue of self-harm
among youths in Australia and how it can be dealt with.
Description of the policy challenge
The policy challenge that is going to be addressed here is the issue of self-harm among youths in
Australia.1 Self-harm is an issue that can be best described as a response to either emotional or
psychological distress. In most cases, this is brought about by issues of negative feelings and a
sense of hopelessness. Self-harm can be really catastrophic when not properly managed. In most
extreme cases self-harm could pose as a risk factor for suicide. It is, however, important to note
that, self-harm is not always an attempt at suicide but most cases that have been reported of self-
harm, the end game is usually suicide.2
Current studies indicate that the rate of self-harm among youths in Australia is increasing at a
really alarming rate and this calls for immediate intervention on the issue. A survey conducted in
2015 shows that at least one out of ten youths in Australia has had issues of self-harm in their
lives. In addition to this, a report released by the Australian Health Ministry revealed that the
1 Arcelus, Jon, Laurence Claes, Gemma L. Witcomb, Ellen Marshall, and Walter Pierre Bouman.
"Risk factors for non-suicidal self-injury among trans youth." 412.
2 Beckman et al., “Mental illness and suicide after self-harm among young adults: long-term
follow-up of self-harm patients, admitted to hospital care, in a national cohort." 3397-3405.

Sociology
number of Australian youths that seek help for cases of self-harm and suicide has doubled from
2000 to 2015. This number comprises of about 190,000 Australian youths.3
Self-harm happens in various forms and in a private manner though not uniformly. Self-harm
comprises of aspects such as; scratching oneself, intentionally curving woods and/or symbols in
one’s own skin, burning oneself intentional with either matches, cigarettes or even hot objects,
hitting and punching oneself, pulling one’s hair out and piercing the skin with sharp objects.
Core Strategies (What is the policy response you are seeking)
As mentioned earlier, the rate of increase in cases of self-harm among youths is increasing at a
really alarming pace.4 This, therefore, calls for a need for appropriate stakeholders to formulate
policies that can help curb the increased cases of self-harm among Australian youths. There are
some policies that can be proposed so as to stop the issue of self-harm among Australian youths.
One of the most efficient policies that can be proposed so as to address the issue of self-harm
among Australian youths is the issue of psychotherapy. Psychotherapy can be used to effectively
reduce the issue of self-harm among most youths in Australia. Well, psychotherapy is a very
broad term that comprises of various therapeutical techniques that can be employed.5 Cognitive
3 Cha et al., "Examining potential iatrogenic effects of viewing suicide and self-injury stimuli."
1510.
4 Edmondson, Cathy and Allan “Non-suicidal reasons for self-harm: A systematic review of self-
reported accounts." 109-117.
5 Ferrey et al., "The impact of self-harm by young people on parents and families: a qualitative
study." 123.

Sociology
behavioral therapy is an example of a psychotheraupetical method that can be used to address the
issue of self-harm.
Here, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can be really helpful in terms of assisting the youths in
learning new ways of how to deal with some really stressful situations in their lives that often
result into self-harm. Engaging youths with cognitive behavioral therapy plays a very crucial role
in helping youths reduces stress in their lives and even cop up with so many complicated issues
such as broken relationships, grief and other life challenges that eventually bring about self-
harm.
It is also important to note that cognitive behavioral therapy works on the basis that the way one
thinks and how they interpret some of their life's events could really affect how they behave and
how they feel. In addition to this, this psychotherapy technique is really specific in nature in the
sense that it requires a person's full and active involvement in order to succeed. It usually focuses
on some of their present-day issues and challenges that often bring about self-harm.
Key targets (Context)
As mentioned earlier, the issue of self-harm affects most youths in Australia. Studies and
statistics indicate that self-harm takes place in various forms such as hitting oneself and
punching, pulling out of hair, cutting, piercing and carving words or symbols in one's skin. It is,
however, important to note that among these the most common types of self-harm are skin-
cutting which comprises of about (70-90%), head banging and/o hitting (21-44%) and burning
which comprises of about 15-37%.6
6 Hom, Thomas and Rebecca "Limitations of a single-item assessment of suicide attempt history:
Implications for standardized suicide risk assessment." 1026.