Examining the Relationship Between Family-of-Origin Functioning and Non-Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI) in Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Psychological Flexibility
Keywords:
Family functioning, Psychological flexibility, Non-suicidal self-injury, Adolescents, Structural equation modelingAbstract
Objective: This study aimed to examine the relationship between family functioning and adolescents’ non-suicidal self-injurious behaviors, considering psychological flexibility as a mediating variable.
Methods and Materials: This research adopted a descriptive–correlational design. The statistical population consisted of adolescents aged 12–18 years in Hasanabad Fashafouyeh during 2023, from which 150 eligible participants were selected using multistage cluster sampling. Data were collected using the Inventory of Statements About Self-Injury (ISAS), the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD-60), and a standardized Psychological Flexibility questionnaire. Descriptive analyses were conducted using SPSS, while confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were performed using AMOS version 26.
Findings: Structural equation modeling indicated that family functioning components—specifically roles, problem solving, and emotional expression—had significant effects on psychological flexibility (p < .05). Psychological flexibility, in turn, showed a significant negative effect on NSSI behaviors (p < .001). Both the direct effects of family functioning on NSSI and the indirect effects mediated by psychological flexibility were statistically significant. Model fit indices (CFI, IFI, RMSEA, and CMIN/DF) confirmed an acceptable to good fit of the proposed model.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that adolescents raised in families with healthier functioning demonstrate higher psychological flexibility, which is associated with a lower likelihood of engaging in non-suicidal self-injury. Strengthening family functioning and enhancing psychological flexibility may therefore represent effective preventive and interventional strategies to reduce NSSI among adolescents.
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