Specific or transdiagnostic? The occurrence of emotions and their association with distress in the daily life of patients with borderline personality disorder compared to clinical and healthy controls

2020 ◽  
Vol 284 ◽  
pp. 112692 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobias D. Kockler ◽  
Philip S. Santangelo ◽  
Matthias F. Limberger ◽  
Martin Bohus ◽  
Ulrich W. Ebner-Priemer
2007 ◽  
Vol 38 (9) ◽  
pp. 1231-1239 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.-P. Glaser ◽  
J. Van Os ◽  
R. Mengelers ◽  
I. Myin-Germeys

SUMMARYBackgroundStress is postulated to play an essential role in the expression of core borderline symptoms. However, the phenomenology of stress reactivity in borderline personality disorder remains unclear. The current study investigated the phenomenology of stress sensitivity in borderline personality disorder in the flow of daily life and compared this with stress sensitivity in patients suffering from psychotic disorders, a group so far known to report the largest reactivity to stress.MethodA total of 44 borderline patients, 42 patients with psychotic disorder and 49 healthy controls were studied with the Experience Sampling Method (a structured diary technique assessing current context and mood in daily life) to assess: (1) appraised subjective stress related to daily events and activities; and (2) emotional reactivity conceptualized as changes in positive and negative affect.ResultsMultilevel regression analysis revealed that subjects with borderline personality disorder experienced significantly more emotional reactivity to daily life stress compared with both patients with psychosis and healthy controls, as evidenced by a larger increase in negative affect and a larger decrease in positive affect following stress.ConclusionThese results are the first to ecologically validate the incorporation of stress reactive symptoms in the diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. Borderline patients continually react stronger than patients with psychosis and healthy controls to small disturbances that continually happen in the natural flow of everyday life. Altered emotional stress reactivity may define borderline personality disorder.


2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (Supplement A) ◽  
pp. 149-161
Author(s):  
Tzipi Buchman-Wildbaum ◽  
Zsolt Unoka ◽  
Robert Dudas ◽  
Gabriella Vizin ◽  
Zsolt Demetrovics ◽  
...  

Shame has been found to be a core feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD). To date, there is no existing systematic review or meta-analysis examining shame in individuals with BPD as compared to healthy controls (HCs). A meta-analysis of 10 studies comparing reported shame in BPD patients to HCs was carried out. Demographic and clinical moderator variables were included to see if they have a relationship with the effect size. Results showed that those with BPD had more reported shame than healthy controls. In addition, in BPD patients and HCs, higher education level was related to lower reported shame. In HCs, it was found that those who were younger reported a higher level of shame. Finally, among BPD patients, there was a relationship between levels of reported shame and elevated PTSD symptomatology. These findings emphasize the clinical relevance of shame in individuals with BPD and the need to formulate psychotherapeutic strategies that target and decrease shame.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Emre Bora

Abstract Background It is widely accepted that borderline personality disorder (BPD) is associated with significant impairments in mentalization and theory of mind (ToM) which are considered as closely related concepts by many authors particularly in psychoanalytical circles. However, for understanding interpersonal difficulties in personality disorders, it is important to distinguish neuro-social cognitive impairment from the abnormal meta-social-cognitive style of patients. Methods The current systematic review aimed to conduct separate meta-analyses of ‘mentalization’ [reflective functioning (RF] and different aspects of ToM in BPD. A literature search was conducted to locate relevant articles published between January 1990 to July 2021. Random-effect meta-analyses were conducted in 34 studies involving 1448 individuals with BPD and 2006 healthy controls. Results A very large impairment in RF was evident in BPD [d = 1.68, confidence interval (CI) = 1.17–2.19]. In contrast, ToM impairment was modest (d = 0.36, CI = 0.24–0.48). BPD patients underperformed healthy controls in ToM-reasoning (d = 0.44, CI = 0.32–0.56) but not ToM-decoding. Increased HyperToM (d = 0.60, CI = 0.41–0.79) and faux pas recognition (d = 0.62, CI = 0.35–0.90) errors in BPD compared to healthy controls were most robust ToM findings in this meta-analysis. Conclusions BPD is characterized by very severe deficits in RF and modest and selective abnormalities in ToM. Interpersonal problems and difficulties in processing social information in BPD can be best explained by patients' maldaptive meta-social cognitive style and top-down effects of these abnormalities rather than having a primary neuro-social cognitive deficit.


2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 730-749
Author(s):  
Martino Belvederi Murri ◽  
Federica Folesani ◽  
Silvia Costa ◽  
Bruno Biancosino ◽  
Luigi Zerbinati ◽  
...  

Very few studies have focused on the relationship between cognitive functions and clinical features in borderline personality disorder (BPD). Subjects with BPD and healthy controls were administered the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status, Trail Making Test A and B, and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-53) was used to assess the severity of current symptoms. Attachment style was assessed with the Experiences in Close Relationship Questionnaire, identity integration with the Personality Structure Questionnaire, and other domains of personality dysfunction with the RUDE Scale for Personality Dysfunction. Patients with BPD performed significantly worse than healthy controls in all cognitive domains. Cognitive functions, particularly delayed memory and visuospatial abilities, displayed meaningful associations with trait-like clinical features, above the effect of global cognition and state psychopathology. These findings highlight the need to evaluate effects of cognitive rehabilitation on trait features among individuals with BPD.


2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 838-856 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah J. Scheibner ◽  
Anna Daniels ◽  
Simon Guendelman ◽  
Franca Utz ◽  
Felix Bermpohl

Individuals suffering from borderline personality disorder (BPD) experience difficulties with mindfulness. How mindfulness influences BPD symptoms, however, is still unknown. We hypothesized that the relationship between mindfulness and BPD symptoms would be mediated by self-compassion. In study 1, we recruited 29 individuals with BPD and 30 group-matched healthy controls. In study 2, we complemented our results with findings from a larger, nonclinical sample of 89 participants that were recruited during an open-house event at the local university. All participants completed questionnaires assessing self-compassion, mindfulness, BPD symptom severity, and emotion dysregulation. In both studies, self-compassion mediated the relationship between mindfulness and BPD symptom severity as well as between mindfulness and emotion dysregulation. Self-compassion seems to be one psychological process that could explain the relationship between mindfulness and BPD symptoms. One promising approach in therapy could be to target self-compassion more directly during mindfulness trainings and interventions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 827-841 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eivind Normann-Eide ◽  
Bj⊘rnar Torske Antonsen ◽  
Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein ◽  
Geir Pedersen ◽  
Anja Vaskinn ◽  
...  

Impaired theory of mind (ToM) is an assumed feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Yet, no studies have compared ToM abilities in patients with BPD, other personality disorders, and healthy controls, or investigated the relationship between ToM and severity of psychopathology and interpersonal problems. In this study, ToM was investigated by the Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition. No differences were found between the three groups in overall ToM abilities. The BPD group was, however, characterized by more excessive ToM (interpreted as hypermentalization). Yet, when differentiating between BPD and further severity indicators, excessive ToM was not specifically associated with a BPD diagnosis per se. Finally, there was a moderate association between hypermentalization and interpersonal problems in the BPD group. This study suggests that BPD patients tend to hypermentalize when they misinterpret social information, and that this tendency is related to the severity of their psychopathology.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregor Domes ◽  
Nicole Ower ◽  
Bernadette von Dawans ◽  
Franny B. Spengler ◽  
Isabel Dziobek ◽  
...  

AbstractBorderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by severe interpersonal dysfunction with problems in social cognition, empathy and social approach. Although the neuropeptide oxytocin is known to regulate complex social cognition and behavior in healthy individuals and clinical populations, there is still a lack of evidence for a potential beneficial effect of oxytocin administration on social cognition and social approach in BPD. Fifty-one women with BPD and 51 matched healthy controls were randomized to a double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-subject experimental trial. We administered a single dose of 24 IU oxytocin or placebo intranasally prior to a standardized task measuring affective and cognitive empathy and approach motivation. All participants were free of hormonal contraception and tested in the mid-luteal phase of their menstrual cycle. In the placebo condition, patients with BPD showed reduced cognitive and affective empathy, and less approach behavior motivation than healthy controls. Intranasal oxytocin significantly increased affective empathy and approach motivation in both BPD patients and healthy controls compared to placebo. More importantly, oxytocin administration led to similar scores between BPD and healthy controls. These findings provide the first evidence for a beneficial effect of oxytocin on deficits in affective empathy and approach motivation of BPD. Our results indicate a beneficial effect of a single dose of oxytocin on affective empathy and approach motivation in women with BPD adapting their level of social functioning to healthy controls. Future clinical trials will need to investigate the long-term effects and effectiveness of oxytocin as an add-on treatment for social impairments in BPD.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 736-750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martijn Van Heel ◽  
Patrick Luyten ◽  
Celine De Meulemeester ◽  
Dominique Vanwalleghem ◽  
Rudi Vermote ◽  
...  

Extant research suggests that borderline personality disorder (BPD) is associated with impairments in mentalizing, that is, comprehending behavior in terms of underlying mental states. However, the precise nature of these impairments remains unclear. The literature is mixed concerning mental-izing based on external features of others, and specifically facial emotion recognition (FER) in BPD patients. This study investigated FER differences in 79 BPD patients and 79 matched healthy controls using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). The authors also investigated attachment dimensions and childhood trauma in relation to mentalizing based on external features. Results showed that BPD patients performed worse on positive and negative emotions. Furthermore, avoidant attachment was negatively related to FER for neutral emotions, particularly in the control group. Trauma was negatively related to FER at trend level, particularly in BPD patients. The implications for this understanding of mentalizing based on external features in BPD are discussed.


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