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Depressive Experiences in Inpatients with Borderline Personality Disorder

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Abstract

We investigate the quality of dependent and self-critical depressive experiences in a hospitalized sample of depressed (n = 17), depressed borderline (n = 29), and borderline non-depressed inpatients (n = 10). Subjects were administered structured diagnostic interviews for axis I and axis II along with the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised Depression Scale (SCL-90-R-DS) and the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ). As predicted, there were no differences between the three groups in overall level of impairment or severity of depression. Phenomenologically, however, depressive experiences were quite different. Subjects with borderline personality disorder, with and without a diagnosed depressive disorder, scored higher than subjects with depression only on the measure of anaclitic neediness. Further analyses revealed that anaclitic neediness was significantly associated with interpersonal distress, self-destructive behaviors, and impulsivity. Findings suggest the importance of considering phenomenological aspects of depression in borderline pathology.

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Notes

  1. Research with anxiety disorders has found similar findings with regard to the relationship between suicidality and impulsivity, aggression, and borderline personality disorder [95, 96]. Although initial studies suggested that individuals with panic disorder and anxiety symptoms are at increased risk for suicidality [97, 98], recent research indicates that panic disorder is not associated with suicidality in the absence of risk factors that include personality disorders, aggression, and impulsivity [95, 96]. In contrast, major depression was not a risk factor for suicidality in panic disordered patients [96].

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Acknowledgments

We wish to acknowledge the efforts of Diana Bowling, Kathleen E. Garnet, Pamela Harding, Steven Joy, Helen Sayward, Rachel Yehuda, and Kathy Zampano for diagnostic interviewing. We thank Adriana Gonzalez, Megan Elliot, Jennifer Hernandez, and Rachel Tomko for editorial assistance and John Kolligian, Jr. and Daniel F. Becker for their helpful comments to earlier drafts of the paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, 521 Moore Building, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    Kenneth N. Levy Ph.D.

  2. Yale University School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    William S. Edell Ph.D. & Thomas H. McGlashan Ph.D.

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  1. Kenneth N. Levy Ph.D.
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  2. William S. Edell Ph.D.
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  3. Thomas H. McGlashan Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Kenneth N. Levy Ph.D..

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Dr. Edell passed away in November 2002.

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Levy, K.N., Edell, W.S. & McGlashan, T.H. Depressive Experiences in Inpatients with Borderline Personality Disorder. Psychiatr Q 78, 129–143 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-006-9033-8

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