The Cognitive, Neural and Genetic Mechanisms of Non-suicidal Self-injury

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) refers to direct and deliberate bodily harm in the absence of suicidal intent. It is prevalent globally and has become one of the major global public health problems. The existing research has explored the cognitive, neural and genetic mechanisms of NSSI with the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the electroencephalograph (EEG) and event-related potential (ERP) and in behavioral genetics. Future research need to consider emotional control and cognitive control together to explore the cognitive neural mechanism of NSSI, especially the connections between NSSI-related brain regions. Genetic susceptibility needs to be further explored and the behavioral genetic mechanism of NSSI needs to be studied from the perspective of gene-environment interplay, including gene-environment interaction and the gene-environment correlation, especially the interplay of multiple genes and multiple environments. Moreover, it is highly necessary to carry out multi-perspective and systematic studies based on the "gene-environment-brain-behavior" framework to further reveal the cognitive and neural mechanisms of NSSI.