Peer victimization and family dynamics in the association between childhood abuse and adolescent non-suicidal self-injury: a cross-sectional moderated mediation study
4 affiliations
- 1Clinical Medical College, Jiangxi Medical College, Shangrao, China
- 2School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
- 3Shangrao Third People’s Hospital, Shangrao, China
- 4Huzhou University, Huzhou, China
Abstract
Background: Childhood abuse is associated with adolescent non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), but the roles of proximal peer experiences and family context remain unclear.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 10,179 Chinese students (47.9% female; Mage = 14.16 years, SD = 1.86). A theoretically motivated model re-specified during peer review examined peer victimization as a statistical mediator and family dynamics (SSFD) as a moderator of the a, b, and direct paths. Analyses controlled for gender, age, and parental education and used 5,000 bootstrap resamples.
Results: Childhood abuse was positively associated with NSSI (total association: β = 0.476, p < .001). The statistical indirect association through peer victimization was 0.150 (95% CI [0.133, 0.167]). Small positive interactions were observed for CA × SSFD predicting peer victimization (β = 0.033, p < .001), PV × SSFD predicting NSSI (β = 0.031, p = .001), and CA × SSFD predicting NSSI (β = 0.046, p < .001). The interactions explained little additional variance (ΔR² = 0.001 for peer victimization and 0.005 jointly for NSSI). Conditional indirect associations were 0.109 at low SSFD and 0.157 at high SSFD; their bootstrap contrast was 0.048 (95% CI [0.011, 0.083]).
Conclusions: The findings are compatible with an associational indirect pattern involving peer victimization and small conditional differences by family dynamics. Because all variables were self-reported at one time point, and the model was re-specified during review, the results should not be interpreted as evidence of causal or developmental mechanisms.
Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05284-w.
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BibTeX
@article{nie2026peer,
title = {{Peer victimization and family dynamics in the association between childhood abuse and adolescent non-suicidal self-injury: a cross-sectional moderated mediation study}},
author = {Shengnan Nie and Jun Cao and Qiang Ke and Zhiming Li},
journal = {BMC Psychology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s40359-026-05284-w},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05284-w},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Peer victimization and family dynamics in the association between childhood abuse and adolescent non-suicidal self-injury: a cross-sectional moderated mediation study
AU - Shengnan Nie
AU - Jun Cao
AU - Qiang Ke
AU - Zhiming Li
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/07
JO - BMC Psychology
DO - 10.1186/s40359-026-05284-w
UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05284-w
AB - Background: Childhood abuse is associated with adolescent non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), but the roles of proximal peer experiences and family context remain unclear. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 10,179 Chinese students (47.9% female; Mage = 14.16 years, SD = 1.86). A theoretically motivated model re-specified during peer review examined peer victimization as a statistical mediator and family dynamics (SSFD) as a moderator of the a, b, and direct paths. Analyses controlled for gender, age, and parental education and used 5,000 bootstrap resamples. Results: Childhood abuse was positively associated with NSSI (total association: β = 0.476, p < .001). The statistical indirect association through peer victimization was 0.150 (95% CI [0.133, 0.167]). Small positive interactions were observed for CA × SSFD predicting peer victimization (β = 0.033, p < .001), PV × SSFD predicting NSSI (β = 0.031, p = .001), and CA × SSFD predicting NSSI (β = 0.046, p < .001). The interactions explained little additional variance (ΔR² = 0.001 for peer victimization and 0.005 jointly for NSSI). Conditional indirect associations were 0.109 at low SSFD and 0.157 at high SSFD; their bootstrap contrast was 0.048 (95% CI [0.011, 0.083]). Conclusions: The findings are compatible with an associational indirect pattern involving peer victimization and small conditional differences by family dynamics. Because all variables were self-reported at one time point, and the model was re-specified during review, the results should not be interpreted as evidence of causal or developmental mechanisms. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05284-w.
SN - 2050-7283
ER -