What aspects of mindfulness and emotion regulation underpin self-harm in individuals with borderline personality disorder?

Abstract

Background

Self-harm presents significant risk for individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Both self-harm and BPD are associated with deficits in mindfulness and emotion dysregulation. Previous research suggests that thought suppression and emotional inexpressivity may underpin self-harm in people with BPD, suggesting potential links to self-harm functions common for those with BPD. More research is needed to strengthen our understanding of this relationship.

Aims

This study examines how BPD symptoms, mindfulness, emotion dysregulation and self-harm functions are related.

Methods

Australian community outpatients diagnosed with BPD (N = 110) completed measures of mindfulness, emotion dysregulation and self-harm functions. Serial mediation analyses were conducted to examine relationships between variables.

Results

BPD symptoms, chronic emptiness, mindfulness skills, describing and non-reacting, emotion dysregulation areas of emotion regulation strategies and poor emotional clarity were associated with recent self-harm. Various combinations of describing, strategies and clarity mediated the path between emptiness and self-harm functions more likely to be endorsed by individuals with a diagnosis of BPD. Describing was associated with all but anti-suicide function, while strategies was associated with all but anti-dissociation.

Conclusion

The study highlights how individuals with BPD experiencing chronic emptiness may benefit from treatment targeting describing skills and adaptive emotion regulation strategies.

Keywords:

• Borderline personality disorder
• self-harm
• mindfulness
• emotion dysregulation
• non-suicidal self-injury

Acknowledgements

This study would not have been possible without the willingness of the participants to contribute their information to improve our understanding of BPD and its treatment.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by a competitive grant provided by the NSW Health Translational Research Grant Scheme. NSW Ministry of Health, www.health.nsw.gov.au. Research design, data collection and analysis and manuscript development were conducted independently of the funding body.