The Impact of Social Exclusion on “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” Performance in Relation to Borderline Personality Disorder Features

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan Savage ◽  
Mark F. Lenzenweger
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Affective Valence ◽  
Social Instability ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Ostracism ◽  
The Mind ◽  
The Impact

In this study we used the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) to explore facial emotion recognition in borderline personality disorder (BPD). We also used Cyberball, a computerized task designed to mimic social ostracism, to examine the response of BPD-feature participants to social exclusion. Seventeen individuals with BPD features were compared to 16 healthy controls on RMET performance pre- and post-exclusion via Cyberball. Our results revealed a significant interaction between BPD-feature status and RMET performance in relation to neutral stimuli following a social exclusion experience. BPD participants' ability to correctly identify neutral faces significantly decreased following exclusion. This finding suggests that once an individual with BPD features experiences a social exclusion event, his or her objectivity decreases and affective valence is ascribed to stimuli previously perceived as neutral. Our results may help to explain, in part, the social instability seen in BPD.

scholarly journals Approach and Avoidance Behavior in Female Patients With Borderline Personality Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jana Wiesenfeller ◽  
Vera Flasbeck ◽  
Elliot C. Brown ◽  
Martin Brüne
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Facial Expressions ◽  
Avoidance Behavior ◽  
Rejection Sensitivity ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Avoidance Task ◽  
Approach Avoidance ◽  
The Impact

ObjectivesBorderline personality disorder (BPD) is portrayed by unstable relationships, fears of abandonment and heightened sensitivity to social rejection. Research has shown that these characteristics may lead to inappropriate social behavior including altered approach-avoidance behavior. However, it has remained unclear how social exclusion may affect approach-avoidance behavior in patients with BPD.DesignWe assessed social approach-avoidance behavior and the impact of social exclusion in a sample of 38 patients with BPD and 40 healthy control participants.MethodsWe used an explicit joystick-based approach-avoidance task (AAT) after playing a virtual ball-tossing game (Cyberball), which simulates the exclusion of the participant by two other players. In the AAT, participants were required to push or pull emotional stimuli, more specifically happy and angry facial expressions, with either direct or averted gaze direction.ResultsPatients with BPD approached happy stimuli less and showed overall less differential approach-avoidance behavior toward individuals expressing positive or negative facial emotions compared to healthy participants, who showed more approach behavior for happy compared to angry facial expressions. Moreover, borderline symptom severity correlated inversely with the AAT score for happy facial expressions and positively with subjective unpleasantness during social exclusion as well as rejection sensitivity. However, social exclusion did not influence approach-avoidance tendencies.ConclusionPatients with BPD showed altered approach-avoidance behavior, which might affect social interactions in the patient’s everyday lives and may therefore impede social interaction.

Differential Change of Borderline Personality Disorder Traits During Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Adolescents

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arne Buerger ◽  
Gloria Fischer-Waldschmidt ◽  
Florian Hammerle ◽  
Kristin von Auer ◽  
Peter Parzer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Behavior Therapy ◽  
Dialectical Behavior Therapy ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
Treatment Options ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Secondary Outcomes ◽  
The Impact

Despite the expansion of treatment options for adults with borderline personality disorder (BPD), research on treatment options for adolescent BPD is scarce. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of dialectical behavior therapy for adolescents (DBT-A) on the individual trait level as primary outcome; and the frequency of suicide attempts and nonsuicidal self-injury, self-reported BPD core pathology, and general psychopathology as secondary outcomes. Seventy-two adolescents (aged 12–17 years) with full- or subsyndromal BPD were treated with DBT-A (25 single sessions, 20 sessions of skills training), and 13 patients (18.1%) withdrew during treatment. From baseline to post-treatment, the number of BPD traits decreased significantly (p ≤ .001). All secondary outcomes decreased significantly as well (p ≤ .001). Results of this uncontrolled study suggest that beside self-harm, DBT-A may also have a beneficial impact on other features of BPD.

Neuropsychological function in bulimia with comorbid borderline personality disorder and depression

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 162-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilia M. Bourke ◽  
Richard J. Porter ◽  
Patrick Sullivan ◽  
Cynthia M. Bulik ◽  
Frances A. Carter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Neuropsychological Tests ◽  
Neuropsychological Test ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Neuropsychological Function ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Trail Making ◽  
The Impact

Background:In bulimia nervosa (BN), borderline personality disorder (BPD) and major depression (MDD) are frequently comorbid conditions. Executive function has been found to be impaired in BPD and MDD, but the impact of comorbidity on neuropsychological function has rarely been investigated.Objective:To investigate neuropsychological function in BN with a focus on comorbid BPD and MDD.Methods:One hundred forty-four medication-free female patients entering a study of psychological treatments for BN performed a brief battery of neuropsychological tests. Comorbid MDD and BPD were systematically identified using standard interviews. Neuropsychological test results were compared.Results:Forty-one subjects had comorbid BPD and 35 had comorbid MDD, while 15 had both. There was no effect of comorbid MDD, but there was a significant effect of BPD and a significant interaction between the diagnosis of MDD and BPD on executive tasks (trail making and Stroop). Thus, compared with subjects without BPD, subjects with BPD performed significantly worse on tests of executive function, while the group with both comorbidities performed even worse.Conclusions:There appears to be an additive effect of BPD and MDD resulting in impaired executive neuropsychological function. Future studies on either disorder and on BN should examine and account for the effect of comorbidity.

Impact of Childhood Maltreatment in Borderline Personality Disorder on Treatment Response to Intensive Dialectical Behavior Therapy

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Euler ◽  
Esther Stalujanis ◽  
Hannah J. Lindenmeyer ◽  
Rosetta Nicastro ◽  
Ueli Kramer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Treatment Response ◽  
Behavior Therapy ◽  
Dialectical Behavior Therapy ◽  
Childhood Maltreatment ◽  
Emotional Abuse ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
The Impact

Childhood maltreatment (CM), including emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and emotional and physical neglect, is associated with severity of borderline personality disorder (BPD). However, knowledge on the impact of CM on treatment response is scarce. The authors investigated whether self-reported CM or one of its subtypes affected treatment retention, depressive symptoms, and impulsivity throughout short-term intensive dialectical behavior therapy (I-DBT) in 333 patients with BPD. Data were analyzed with linear and logistic regressions and linear mixed models, using a Bayesian approach. Patients who reported childhood emotional abuse had a higher dropout rate, whereas it was lower in patients who reported childhood emotional neglect. Emotional neglect predicted a greater decrease of depressive symptoms, and global CM predicted a greater decrease of impulsivity. The authors concluded that patients with BPD who experienced CM might benefit from I-DBT in specific symptom domains. Nonetheless, the impact of emotional abuse on higher dropout needs to be considered.

scholarly journals Mentalizing Based on External Features in Borderline Personality Disorder Compared With Healthy Controls: The Role of Attachment Dimensions and Childhood Trauma

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 736-750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martijn Van Heel ◽  
Patrick Luyten ◽  
Celine De Meulemeester ◽  
Dominique Vanwalleghem ◽  
Rudi Vermote ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Childhood Trauma ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Avoidant Attachment ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Attachment Dimensions

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.

Facial emotional expression in reaction to social exclusion in borderline personality disorder

2011 ◽  
Vol 41 (9) ◽  
pp. 1929-1938 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Staebler ◽  
B. Renneberg ◽  
M. Stopsack ◽  
P. Fiedler ◽  
M. Weiler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Emotional Reactions ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Emotional Expressions ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Coding System ◽  
Emotional Facial Expressions

BackgroundDisturbances in social interaction are a defining feature of patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). In this study, facial emotional expressions, which are crucial for adaptive interactions in social contexts, were assessed in patients with BPD in response to social exclusion.MethodWe examined facial emotional reactions of 35 patients with BPD and 33 healthy controls when playing Cyberball, a virtual ball-tossing game that reliably induces social exclusion. Besides self-reported emotional responses, facial emotional expressions were analyzed by applying the Emotional Facial Action Coding System (EMFACS).ResultsPatients with BPD showed a biased perception of participation. They more readily reported feeling excluded compared to controls even when they were included. In BPD, social exclusion led to an increase in self-reported other-focused negative emotions. Overall, EMFACS analyses revealed that BPD patients reacted with fewer positive expressions and with significantly more mixed emotional expressions (two emotional facial expressions at the same time) compared to the healthy control group when excluded.ConclusionsBesides a negative bias for perceived social participation, ambiguous facial emotional expressions may play an important role in the disturbed relatedness in patients with BPD.

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