Neurobiology of the association between non-suicidal self-injury, suicidal behavior and emotional intelligence: A review

Non-suicidal self-injuries (NSSI) and suicidal behaviours (SB) are common causes of serious medical problems leading to hospitalization or death in adolescents and young adults. The prevalence of NSSI in adolescents is estimated at 17-18% in general population and in 40% of psychiatric hospitalized patients. Nearly one million people worldwide die from suicide each year. The epidemiological data show that suicide is the fourth cause of death among children between 10 and 14 years old, the third cause among people aged 15-19 years old, the first or second among people 14-25 years old and the second among people 25-34 years old. Many psychological, psychiatric, genetic and demographic factors have been previously studied in order to assess risk factors leading to NSSI and SB. One of psychological factors influencing the engagement in NSSI and SB is emotional intelligence (EI), which is defined as collection of social skills. More frequent NSSI and SB have been found in individuals with low EI in previous studies. The relationship between SB, NSSI and underlaying neurotransmission and brain structures have been also extensively studied. Studies applying neuroimaging techniques show correlation between alterations of brain areas which are responsible for involving in self-injourous acts and suicidal behaviours and regions key to EI levels. Thus we aimed to review the neurobiological background of emotional intelligence and self-harm and discuss the current state of knowledge on its relationship