Comparison of Social Media Platforms Frequently Used By Those Who Engage in NSSI

Introduction: New forms of social media are being developed at a rapid pace and research on their uses especially among adolescents and young adults who engage in non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) has not been able to match that pace. Social media has become one of the dominant forms of communication among adolescents (e.g. Subrahmanyam & Greenfield, 2008) and as such are also a more commonly used by those who engage in NSSI who are looking for online social support. Research has previously examined the content of self-harm and NSSI-related material and posts on Facebook (Niwa & Mandrusiak, 2012), YouTube (Lewis et al., 2011), messaging boards (Whitlock et al., 2006), Instagram (Moreno et al., 2016), Twitter (Sueki, 2015), and Tumblr (Eliseo-Arras et al., 2016, 2017; Seko & Lewis, 2016). However, to date, no study has examined the similarities and the differences of the functionality of these social media platforms and how various features of these sites make it easier for users to post potentially NSSI-triggering material.

Method: The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the form, structure, policies, and content of social media platforms that are utilized by adolescents and young adults. This study examined the ways in which these platforms can be employed for someone who engages in NSSI and compared each of these platforms around six factors: profile creation, anonymity, moderation, censorship, search results layout, and other features.

Results: One of the more interesting findings was platforms that used anonymous profiles more often had triggering content. For instance, while both Tumblr and Reddit allow for anonymous profile names, with Tumblr there is no moderating of negative comments or abusive trolls whereas in Reddit, which is organized in communities, moderators approve all posts within their assigned communities. However, platforms that had moderators did not do much in the way of “policing” the triggering content. This was most likely because the moderators may have created the NSSI-related forum.

Conclusions: While certain social media platforms are taking steps toward containing NSSI-related material and content in the sense that they are providing resources and outreach, work still needs to be done toward monitoring triggering content. From a prevention science standpoint, mental health professionals should understand how adolescents and young adults are using these platforms as a coping mechanism and source of social support.