Lifetime and 12-Month Nonsuicidal Self-Injury and Academic Performance in College Freshmen

We examined whether nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is associated with academic performance in college freshmen, using census-based web surveys (N=7,527; response=65.4%). NSSI was assessed with items from the Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Interview and subsequently linked with the administratively recorded academic year percentage (AYP). Freshmen with lifetime and 12-month NSSI showed a reduction in AYP of 3.4% and 5.9%, respectively. The college environment was found to moderate the effect of 12-month NSSI, with more strongly reduced AYPs in departments with higher-than-average mean departmental AYPs. The findings suggest that overall stress and test anxiety are underlying processes between NSSI membership and academic performance.