Self-mutilation, obsessionality and narcissism.

A controlled study of the clinical and biographical features of 22 female repeated self-cutters is described. The results of the assessment of these patients, using the Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire and the Obsessive-Compulsive section of the Tavistock Inventory, is presented. The marked obsessionality of these patients is emphasized and the possible implications of these findings for treatment is discussed.