Associations of Physical Activity and Psychological Resilience with Non-Suicidal Self-Injury Among Chinese Adolescents: A Combined Variable- and Person-Centered Approach

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) among adolescents is an important public health concern. This study examined the associations among physical activity (PA), psychological resilience (PR), and NSSI among 2257 junior high school students aged 12-17 years in central China. Using both variable-centered and person-centered approaches, the study found that higher PA and higher PR were related to lower NSSI. PR also partly accounted for the association between PA and NSSI, suggesting that resilience may be one pathway linking physical activity to reduced self-injury risk. Latent profile analysis identified three PA-PR profiles: low, moderate, and high. Adolescents in the low PA-PR profile reported the highest NSSI risk, whereas those in the high PA-PR profile reported the lowest risk. These findings suggest that interventions promoting PA and resilience may help reduce adolescent NSSI risk.