Deliberate self-harm behaviour, which results in signifi
cant tissue damage, can occur in people of all ages
but particularly high rates have been found among adolescents.
Traumatic experiences in childhood, emotional
neglect, psychological or physical abuse and, in particular,
sexual abuse have been shown to have associations
with deliberate self-harm behaviour (12). Self-reports
indicate that apart from emotional neglect and sexual
abuse, insecure attachment, childhood separation and dissociation
are signifi cant predictors of self-harm (13).
Self-harmers have more symptoms of several personality
disorders than non-self-harmers, and it is suggested that
anxiety plays a prominent role in their psychopathology
(14). Together, this might be one explanation of why
young people sell sex.