The Association Between Peer Bullying and Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Through Emotion Dysregulation

Abstract

Peer bullying (PB) and Nonsuicidal Self-Injury (NSSI) are major public health concerns, often found to be correlates. While literature suggests emotion dysregulation may explain this association, its role as potential mediator remains unclear. This study examined the indirect relationship between retrospective school-based relational PB and past-year NSSI in emerging adults through emotion dysregulation. University students (N = 2,353), aged 17-25 (M_age=18.95, SD_age=1.52), completed the Retrospective Bullying Questionnaire, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, and the Ottawa Self-Injury Inventory. Findings suggest that emotion dysregulation potentially explains the link between school-based PB and NSSI in young adulthood. Mediation analyses revealed that self-reported PB was indirectly related to past-year NSSI through general emotion dysregulation (β = 0.1, CI_95% [0.02, 0.17]). Specifically, the limited access to emotion regulation strategies (β = 0.12, CI_95% [0.05, 0.19]) and difficulty engaging in goal-directed behavior (β = 0.05, CI_95% [0.00, 0.09]) dimensions significantly mediated the PB-NSSI link. These findings highlight the clinical relevance of ED processes in understanding NSSI risk among individuals with bullying histories. Intervention and prevention programs targeting emotion regulation skill development may help mitigate the impact of PB and reduce self-injury risk. Further longitudinal research is needed to clarify the role of emotion regulation skills in the bullying-NSSI association.

Keywords: Emotion Dysregulation; Nonsuicidal Self-injury; Peer Bullying; Peer Victimization; University Students.