In what researchers call an “alarming new trend,” teens and young adults are creating and sharing YouTube videos about cutting, burning or otherwise harming themselves — and even demonstrating techniques, a study says today in Pediatrics.
Previous research suggests that 14 percent to 21 percent of teens and young adults have deliberately injured themselves at least once — using knives to cut their arms or legs, for example, says lead author Stephen Lewis of the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. Some go on to attempt suicide, the third-leading cause of death for ages 15 to 24.
Though it’s unlikely that watching a video would cause an otherwise happy person to begin cutting, Lewis says the videos could “trigger” an urge to harm themselves in young people who have already tried it.
Why do they hurt themselves in this way? Young people say they do it to cope with stress or traumatic experiences, Lewis says. Most do it in secret, hiding scars under long-sleeved shirts and confiding only in anonymous people online.
“The Web site won’t cause this behavior, but it can give them a community of support, so it normalizes it,” says Liz Perle, co-founder of Common Sense Media, who wasn’t involved in the study. “It breaks my heart.”
The top 100 videos analyzed for the study had been viewed more than 2 million times, Guelph says. Viewers rated them highly, giving them average scores of 4.6 out of 5.
Some kids may go online seeking instructions on self-harm, says Parry Aftab, founder of the non-profit group WiredSafety. “It’s the reality show of the day,” she says. “You’re looking at people doing titillating things. I don’t think kids really understand that these are real people and not actors.”
Other Web sites promote anorexia, autoerotic asphyxiation, even how-to guides for suicide.
In a statement, YouTube said the company…