Abstract
<jats:p><jats:bold>Objectives. </jats:bold> To engage with the experiential phenomena of men's self‐harm, to get a sense of its ‘feel’, its character, and to relate these things in a useful and authentic way.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Design. </jats:bold> Qualitative in‐depth interview study with design input from service users' groups.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Method. </jats:bold> <jats:italic>Hermeneutic phenomenology</jats:italic>. Two interviews with each of four participants in their homes, with the intention of developing understanding through dialogic interview and reflection.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Results. </jats:bold> Some of the character of men's self‐harm was recognizable from the psychodynamic and functional literature: soothing practices, dissociation, and an ambivalent stuckness around separation versus incorporation. There were other, unexpected structures present: existential vulnerability and openness, sacrifice, lack of boundary, and insatiability.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Conclusions. </jats:bold> Professionals who work with men who self‐harm may like to be aware of these relational dynamics.</jats:p>
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 91-109 |
| Number of pages | 0 |
| Journal | Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice |
| Volume | 83 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 2010 |