Identifying Risk for Self‐Harm: Rumination and Negative Affectivity in the Prospective Prediction of Nonsuicidal Self‐Injury

Research suggests nonsuicidal self‐injury (NSSI) may function as a maladaptive strategy to regulate negative emotions, and individuals high in trait negative affectivity (NA) may be particularly at risk. Rumination, a cognitive emotion regulation strategy, may amplify negative affect, increasing the likelihood of NSSI. The current study found that high NA and high rumination interacted to predict both likelihood of engagement in NSSI and frequency of NSSI. This study provides support for the joint contribution of cognitive and temperamental factors impacting the relationship between NA and NSSI and suggests that interventions targeted at maladaptive emotion regulation strategies may help inform individualized treatment.