Nomothetic and Idiographic Patterns of Responses to Emotions in Borderline Personality Disorder

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Cardona ◽  
Matthew W. Southward ◽  
Kayla Furbish ◽  
Alexandra Comeau ◽  
Shannon Sauer-Zavala
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Emotional Experiences ◽  
Discrete Emotions ◽  
Specific Data ◽  
Daily Diary Study ◽  
Biosocial Theory ◽  
Regulation Strategies

According to Linehan's (1993a) biosocial theory, emotion dysregulation is a core feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Despite significant advances in our understanding of emotion dysregulation in BPD, the specific associations among prompting events, discrete emotions, and selected regulation strategies (adaptive and maladaptive) have not yet been detailed. We explored these relations in a daily diary study of eight participants (Mage = 21.57, 63% female; 63% Asian) with BPD over 10-12 weeks. Participants reported prompting events of interpersonal conflict, emotional experiences of anxiety, and strategies of problem-solving and intentional avoidance most frequently. We found several unique relations between regulation strategies and both prompting events and discrete emotions, nomothetically (across all participants) and idiographically (within specific participants). These patterns contribute to an enriched understanding of the emotional experiences of people with BPD, and demonstrate the value of collecting and considering both group-level and person-specific data on emotion regulation processes within this population.

scholarly journals Quality or quantity? A multi-study analysis of emotion regulation skills deficits associated with Borderline Personality Disorder

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew W. Southward ◽  
Jennifer S. Cheavens
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Online Study ◽  
Biosocial Theory ◽  
Frequent Use ◽  
Regulation Strategies ◽  
And Control ◽  
Group D

Linehan’s (1993) biosocial theory posits that people with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) have emotion regulation skills deficits characterized by 1) less frequent use of adaptive emotion regulation strategies, 2) more frequent use of maladaptive strategies, or 3) poorer quality strategy implementation (i.e., strategies implemented less skillfully). We tested these possibilities among participants with BPD, Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), or no disorder (controls). Study 1 participants (N = 272) were recruited online; Study 2 participants (N = 90) completed in-person diagnostic assessments. The BPD groups reported greater use of maladaptive strategies than the MDD (d = .35) and control (d = 1.54) groups and lower quality implementation than the MDD (d = .33) and control groups (d = .97). BPD participants reported similar use of adaptive strategies as the MDD group (d = .09) but less use than controls (d = .47). BPD may be uniquely characterized by overuse of maladaptive strategies and poorer quality emotion regulation implementation.

scholarly journals A Day in the Life of Borderline Personality Disorder: A Preliminary Analysis of Within-Day Emotion Generation and Regulation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew W. Southward ◽  
Stephen Semcho ◽  
Nicole Stumpp ◽  
Destiney MacLean ◽  
Shannon Sauer-Zavala
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Emotional State ◽  
Behavioral Responses ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Emotional Experiences ◽  
Emotion Regulation Strategies ◽  
Emotion Intensity ◽  
Regulation Strategies

In Linehan’s (1993) biosocial theory, borderline personality disorder (BPD) results in part from frequent, intense, negative emotions and maladaptive behavioral responses to those emotions. We conducted a secondary data analysis of an intensive single-case experimental design to explore hourly relations among behavioral responses and emotions in BPD. Eight participants with BPD (Mage = 21.57, 63% female; 63% Asian) reported their emotions and behaviors hourly on two days. Participants reported a neutral-to-negative average emotional state with substantial variability each day. This emotional state was characterized most frequently by anxiety and joy. Participants tended to “dig into”, or savor, experiences of joy, but problem-solve around, push away, or accept anxiety. Acceptance predicted hour-by-hour increases in negative emotion intensity, and pushing emotions away predicted hour-by-hour increases in positive emotion intensity. These results suggest that anxiety dominates the emotional experiences of people with BPD and co-occurs with a variety of emotion regulation strategies, while joy co-occurs with strategies designed to prolong emotional experiences. Despite its general adaptiveness, acceptance may be less effective, and pushing emotions away may be more effective, than other emotion regulation strategies at improving momentary negative emotions for those with BPD. We discuss the preliminary nature of these findings and encourage future researchers to build on them in larger samples with more severe presentations of BPD.

Rumination in Borderline Personality Disorder: Meta-Analysis

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mara J. Richman ◽  
Zsolt Unoka ◽  
Robert Dudas ◽  
Zsolt Demetrovics
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Sample Type ◽  
Moderator Variables ◽  
Analytic Review ◽  
Self Harm

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by deficits in emotion regulation and affective liability. Of this domain, ruminative behaviors have been considered a core feature of emotion dysregulation difficulties. Despite this, inconsistencies have existed in the literature regarding which rumination type is most prominent in those with BPD symptoms. Moreover, no meta-analytic review has been performed to date on rumination in BPD. Taking this into consideration, a meta-analysis was performed to assess how BPD symptoms correlate with rumination, while also considering clinical moderator variables (i.e., BPD symptom domain, co-morbidities, GAF score) and demographic moderator variables (i.e., age, gender, sample type, and education level). Analysis of correlation across rumination domains for the entire sample revealed a medium overall correlation between BPD symptoms and rumination. When assessing types of rumination, the largest correlation was among pain rumination followed by anger, depressive, and anxious rumination. Among BPD symptom domain, affective instability had the strongest correlation with increased rumination, followed by unstable relationships, identity disturbance, and self-harm/ impulsivity, respectively. Demographic variables showed no significance. Clinical implications are considered and further therapeutic interventions are discussed in the context of rumination.

Positive Emotion in Borderline Personality Disorder

2019 ◽  
pp. 332-352
Author(s):  
Jill M. Hooley ◽  
Sara R. Masland
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Severe Form ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Negative Emotionality ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Emotional Experiences

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a severe form of personality pathology characterized by high levels of negative emotionality. Because negative emotions are so central to the clinical presentation of BPD, the issue of how people with this disorder process and experience positive emotional experiences is relatively unexplored. This chapter provides an overview of what is currently known about positive emotions and BPD. Although the literature is characterized by many inconsistencies, our review suggests that people with BPD do indeed experience positive emotions. However, their recall of positive emotional experiences appears to be reduced, perhaps because such experiences are more transient, less stable, and more likely to be quickly replaced by negative emotions. Problems with the identification and accurate differentiation of positive emotions may also play a role. Such difficulties may conspire to create a psychological world for people with BPD that is characterized by a focus on negative mood and negative emotional experiences. In addition to focusing on negative affect, we suggest that it might also be clinically beneficial to make problems with positive affect a specific clinical target.

scholarly journals The neurodevelopmental trajectory of Borderline Personality Disorder: a review

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siobhan R Edinboro ◽  
Tobias Nolte ◽  
Iris Vilares
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Adult Onset ◽  
Neurodevelopmental Model

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a complex psychological condition characterised by affective instability, cognitive impairment, problematic behaviours and social dysfunction. Due to the variability in symptomatic profiles, efforts have recently been directed towards comprehending the disorder from a neurological standpoint within the aforementioned domains. Although adolescent-onset BPD is now reliably diagnosed as the adult-onset variant, a limited number of studies address the neural correlates of first presentation BPD. Moreover, research investigating the outcomes of therapeutic interventions on brain function and morphology is scarce. Preliminary findings consistently cite the involvement of grey matter deficiencies of the orbitofrontal cortex, hippocampus and amygdala in the neuropathology of BPD. Additionally, frontolimbic white matter deficits are thought to be implicated. Functionally, over-activity in limbic regions such as the cingulate cortices and amygdala are believed to partially account for emotion dysregulation, though the neural correlates of cognitive, social and behavioural impairments are relatively poorly understood. The present review will endeavour to evaluate the existing neurobiological evidence for BPD in adolescence as well as adulthood. Finally, a rudimentary neurodevelopmental model of BPD will be proposed.

scholarly journals Emotion dysregulation as a maintenance factor of borderline personality disorder features

2014 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 657-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie D. Stepp ◽  
Lori N. Scott ◽  
Jennifer Q. Morse ◽  
Kimberly A. Nolf ◽  
Michael N. Hallquist ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Borderline Personality

scholarly journals Interpersonal and Emotional Experiences of Social Interactions in Borderline Personality Disorder

2009 ◽  
Vol 197 (7) ◽  
pp. 484-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie D. Stepp ◽  
Paul A. Pilkonis ◽  
Kirsten E. Yaggi ◽  
Jennifer Q. Morse ◽  
Ulrike Feske
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Emotional Experiences

Self-Compassion Mediates the Relationship Between Mindfulness and Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 838-856 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah J. Scheibner ◽  
Anna Daniels ◽  
Simon Guendelman ◽  
Franca Utz ◽  
Felix Bermpohl
Keyword(s):  
Borderline Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Symptom Severity ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Psychological Process ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Self Compassion ◽  
Nonclinical Sample ◽  
The Relationship

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.

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