Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) includes behaviors such as cutting, burning, and scratching yourself without intending to die.

Research suggests that distress tolerance, an individual’s ability to manage their internal emotional state in response to stress-inducing situations, can prevent NSSI in high-risk groups. However, previous research in this area has largely focused on retrospective reports spanning large periods of time, limiting our ability to understand how distress tolerance might reduce NSSI risk in real-time, in the flow of daily life.

Therefore, the purpose of our current study is to investigate how momentary distress intolerance levels can affect fluctuations in NSSI intensity.