The relation of protective factors to deliberate self-harm among African-American adults: moderating roles of gender and sexual orientation identity.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have examined correlates of deliberate self-harm (DSH) among African-Americans. Moreover, most research on the correlates of DSH in general has focused on risk factors rather than protective factors.

AIMS: This study examined differences in perceived social support, religiosity (both spirituality and church attendance) and overall life satisfaction between African-Americans with and without a history of DSH, as well as the moderating roles of gender and sexual orientation in these relations.

METHOD: Participants were 244 African-American university students who completed questionnaires.

RESULTS: Participants with (vs. without) DSH reported significantly lower levels of social support. Additionally, rates of DSH were significantly higher among participants who attended church irregularly versus regularly or rarely/never. However, the association between DSH and church attendance was significant only for women (vs. men) and LGBQ (vs. heterosexual) women. Further, gender moderated the relation between DSH and social support from both significant others and friends, with self-harming women (but not men) reporting less support than their non-DSH counterparts.

CONCLUSIONS: Findings add to the literature on DSH among African-Americans, highlighting both social support and church attendance (depending on regularity) as potential protective factors within this population.