Table 1 Standardized factor loadings and descriptive statistics for NSSI function factors

To produce a sense of being real when I feel numb and “unreal”

.64

To relieve feelings of sadness or feeling “down”

.63

To distract me from unpleasant memories

.62

To punish myself

.60

To stop feeling alone and empty

.56

To experience physical pain in one area, when the other pain I feel is unbearable

.56

To stop me from acting out ideas of killing myself

.50

To stop my parents from being angry at me

.56

To stop people from expecting so much from me

.55

To change my body image and/or appearance

.53

To show others how hurt or damaged I am

.50

To avoid getting in trouble for something I did

.46

To get out of doing something that I don’t want to do

.38

To belong to a group

.29

To release frustration

.89

To release anger

.80

To release unbearable tension.

.62

To experience a “high” like a drug high

.71

To provide a sense of excitement that feels exhilarating

.69

For sexual excitement

.31

To prove to myself how much I can take

.26

α

.78

.66

.82

.53

Mean scores (SD)

17.78 (7.11)

5.47 (4.93)

8.62 (3.49)

3.69 (3.39)