School counselors and student self-injury.
BACKGROUND
The purpose of this study was to examine the experience, knowledge, and needs of school counselors in relation to students' self-injurious behaviors.


METHODS
One thousand members of the American School Counselor Association were randomly selected to receive a questionnaire on the study of self-injury. Four hundred forty-three school counselors returned usable questionnaires.


RESULTS
Most (81%) reported working with a self-injurer during their career, and 51% reported working with a self-injurer during the 2002-2003 school year. Findings suggest that counselors feel they are the appropriate person to work with students who self-injure but need more training to identify self-injurers and refer them to appropriate resources outside of the school. Counselors identified a number of barriers to successfully working with students who self-injure, such as lack of training, lack of cooperation with school personnel, and lack of policy on school injury.


CONCLUSIONS
The authors suggest a model where the school counselor acts as a liaison to ensure the coordination of education about self-injury for students, parents, and school staff and as a conduit to refer students to therapists in the community.
Roberts-Dobie
Susan
S
School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services, University of Northern Iowa, 219 Wellness and Recreation Center, Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0241, USA. susan.dobie@uni.edu
Donatelle
Rebecca J
RJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D003376:Counseling; D004517:Education, Professional; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012572:School Health Services; D016728:Self-Injurious Behavior / Q000628:therapy*; D014481:United States