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A systematic review of the relationship between internet use, self-harm and suicidal behaviour in young people: The good, the bad and the unknown.

Amanda MarchantKeith HawtonAnn StewartPaul MontgomeryVinod SingaraveluKeith LloydNicola PurdyKate DaineAnn John
Published in: PloS one (2017)
There is significant potential for harm from online behaviour (normalisation, triggering, competition, contagion) but also the potential to exploit its benefits (crisis support, reduction of social isolation, delivery of therapy, outreach). Young people appear to be increasingly using social media to communicate distress, particularly to peers. The focus should now be on how specific mediums' (social media, video/image sharing) might be used in therapy and recovery. Clinicians working with young people who self-harm or have mental health issues should engage in discussion about internet use. This should be a standard item during assessment. A protocol for this review was registered with the PROSPERO systematic review protocol registry: (http://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.asp?ID=CRD42015019518).
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