Interventions for Suicide and Self-Injury in Children and Adolescents

Despite increases in the numbers of children and adolescents seeking and receiving mental health treatment, rates of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) in youth continue to rise. In the hopes of aiding ongoing efforts to alleviate the burden of SITBs in this vulnerable population, the present meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) summarizes current knowledge on the efficacy of SITB interventions in children and adolescents. A total of 77 articles comprising 461 total effect sizes were included in our analyses. We used a random-effects model to evaluate both overall intervention efficacy and effects on specific SITB outcomes. We also explored several potential moderators of treatment efficacy. Results revealed that nearly all interventions produced nonsignificant reductions in SITBs. These patterns were largely consistent across SITB outcomes, regardless of intervention type, treatment components, sample characteristics, and publication year. This meta-analysis highlights several opportunities for improvement in the way that SITB interventions are developed and implemented in child and adolescent populations. The most effective interventions are likely to directly target the causes of SITBs; therefore, future research is needed to identify the causal processes underlying the onset and maintenance of SITBs in youth.