Depressive symptoms and unusual experiences linked bullying to self-injury in Chinese students

In a study of 15,968 students, these symptoms connected verbal bullying with non-suicidal self-injury rather than a direct link.

Abstract editorial illustration accompanying the article: Depressive symptoms and unusual experiences linked bullying to self-injury in Chinese students

Editorial illustration — not from the study.

Researchers analyzed online questionnaire responses from students aged 12 to 24 in Hunan province, collected between October 2021 and October 2022. The questionnaires covered school bullying, psychotic-like experiences, depressive symptoms and non-suicidal self-injury.

In their network analysis, verbal bullying victimisation did not show a direct connection to any non-suicidal self-injury indicators. Instead, psychotic-like experiences and depressive symptoms formed a chain linking verbal bullying with non-suicidal self-injury. The researchers also identified symptoms that were especially connected within the network.

How the symptoms connected

The network showed robust connections, with no isolated symptoms. The symptom involving being distracted by distant sounds had the highest overall connectedness. Paranoid thoughts and suicidal ideation had relatively high bridge strength, meaning they connected different symptom areas in the network.

Verbal bullying victimisation had no direct link to the non-suicidal self-injury indicators. The analysis instead identified psychotic-like experiences and depressive symptoms as chain mediators between verbal bullying and non-suicidal self-injury. The authors describe these results as a symptom-level account of the associations among bullying, these experiences and self-injury.

Why the links matter

The findings point to depressive symptoms and psychotic-like experiences as parts of the pathway connecting verbal bullying with non-suicidal self-injury in this group of Chinese students. The researchers say highly connected symptoms and bridge symptoms may inform future screening, risk assessment and longitudinal research.

Evidence and caveats

This was a cross-sectional study based on online questionnaires, so it measured associations at one point rather than showing cause and effect. Participants were 15,968 students aged 12–24 from Hunan province who were selected using convenience sampling, which limits how broadly the findings can be generalized. The chain mediation results describe a statistical pathway, not proof that bullying leads to symptoms and then to self-injury over time.

For U.S. Catholic priests, loneliness was tied to support, strain and faith

A longitudinal study of 1,056 U.S. Catholic priests found that earlier flourishing and stronger support from fellow priests, bishops and lay networks were associated with less loneliness three years later. Psychological distress and burnout were associated with more loneliness, while private prayer frequency was not a significant predictor.

1 day ago·8 views

Society & Economics

Opaque AI rules leave Iranian students torn over their writing

A study of 11 Iranian university students finds that unclear institutional rules around AI-mediated writing can leave students caught between pressure to produce polished work and expectations of independent authorship. Students described reduced ownership of their writing, secrecy, anxiety relief and moral uncertainty.

1 day ago·41 views

Abstract editorial illustration accompanying the article: Prolonged smartphone use may contribute to sudden eye crossing, but cause remains unproven

Society & Economics

Prolonged smartphone use may contribute to sudden eye crossing, but cause remains unproven

A focused review links prolonged, close-up smartphone use with reports of acute acquired comitant esotropia, a sudden inward turning of the eyes that can cause double vision. The evidence suggests a possible contribution in some people but does not establish that smartphone use causes the condition across the population.

2 days ago·12 views