Work

Phenomenology of Borderline Personality Disorder

Year: 2013

Type: article

Abstract: Little is known about racial differences in borderline personality disorder (BPD) that may influence etiology, phenomenology, and treatment of women with BPD. A total of 83 women with BPD participated in this cross-sectional study: n = 41 white and n = 42 African-American women. Structured interviews were used to assess Axis I and II disorders, and a series of interviews and questionnaires captured internalizing and externalizing symptoms. The white women with BPD reported more severe internalizing symptoms, whereas the African-American women reported more severe externalizing symptoms. Except for the association between race and number of suicide attempts, the relationship between race and internalizing/externalizing symptoms was mediated by socioeconomic status. In conclusion, African-American women with BPD may present with more severe symptoms of lack of anger control and fewer suicidal behaviors than those of white women with BPD, raising the possibility that they are misdiagnosed and receive treatments that are not optimal for BPD.

Source: The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease

DOI: 10.1097/nmd.0000000000000053

Authors: Natacha M. De Genna, Ulrike Feske

Institutions: University of Pittsburgh, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System

Language: English

Topic: Personality Disorders and Psychopathology

Subfield: Clinical Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Reduced inequalities, Gender equality

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse