The transition trajectories of self-injurious thoughts and behaviours among children from a biopsychosocial perspective

Although self-injurious thoughts and behaviours (SITB) among children pose an imminent public health concern, the comprehensive understanding of SITB transitions remains unclear. Here we used the longitudinal data of 7,270 children from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive DevelopmentSM Study (ABCD Study). We found that SITB transitions are linked to altered cortical areas of the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex and the posterior cingulate cortex and altered functional connectivity between the default mode and attention networks. Additionally, high behaviour inhibition and general psychopathology (that is, p-factor) were identified as risk factors for SITB transitions, while the presence of robust family support and school support served as protective factors. Our study extends prior cross-sectional investigations by elucidating the temporal precedence of specific biopsychosocial factors, underscoring their potential predictive significance in SITB occurrence. Early identification of these factors holds great promise for targeted prevention, addressing the pressing public health concerns associated with SITB.In this retrospective study, Wen and colleagues used data from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development cohort study to investigate the neurobiological, psychological and social characteristics that are associated with self-injurious thoughts and behaviours transitions in children.