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Objective A measure was recently developed which assesses self-efficacy to resist NSSI across differing contexts. The aim of this study was to examine how self-efficacy to resist NSSI across contexts interacts with NSSI-related outcome expectancies when differentiating NSSI history. Participant: 501 Australian college students aged 17-40 years ( M  = 21.21, SD  = 2.36). Method: Participants completed online questionnaires. Results: Self-efficacy to resist NSSI when in contexts considered to be protective or of high risk moderated the relationships between NSSI-related outcome expectancies and recent engagement in NSSI. Participants who expected NSSI to result in communication were more likely to have recently engaged in NSSI if they held weak self-efficacy to resist NSSI in protective contexts. Expecting NSSI to result in diminished self-worth was protective against weak self-efficacy to resist NSSI. Conclusion: Results support the application of Social Cognitive Theory to NSSI and provide future avenues for exploring NSSI-specific cognitions.

Objectives: According to Social Cognitive Theory, the anticipated consequences of a behavior (outcome expectancies), coupled with our belief in our ability to successfully perform the behavior (self-efficacy), determine the likelihood of engagement in a behavior. We explored whether the relationship between nonsuicidal self-injury outcome expectancies and self-injury was moderated by self-efficacy to resist nonsuicidal self-injury. Participants: Five hundred and sixteen college students aged 18-26 years ( M  = 20.60, SD  = 1.86). Methods: Self-report measures were completed online. Results: The relationship between expecting self-injury would result in pain or emotion regulation and engaging in self-injury was moderated by a belief in the ability to resist self-injury. People who had never self-injured were more likely to believe that self-injury would cause physical pain and believe they could resist self-injury. A belief in the ability to resist self-injury countered expectations that self-injury would result in emotion regulation. Conclusion: Results may inform college-based prevention and intervention efforts.