Profiles of Cognitive Emotion Regulation in Individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder: Predicting Self Harm and Suicidal Ideation

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to assess the profile of cognitive emotion regulation strategies in patients with borderline personality disorder compared to healthy controls. A secondary objective was to predict self-harm and suicidal ideation from cognitive emotion regulation strategies. For the main study, self-harm scale was required in Urdu version. Therefore, an additional objective was to translate and validate the self-harm scale into Urdu. The current study assessed nine emotion regulation strategies. The current study sample consisted of 350 individuals (M=30.06, SD=5.01) comprising patients with borderline personality disorder (n =150) & control group (n =200). Clinical samples were selected from clinical settings using purposive sampling technique. Gender, education, and age-matched participants in the control group were selected from community. Both groups were assessed for cognitive emotion regulation, self harm and suicidal ideation scales. Cognitive emotion regulation profiles of patients with borderline personality disorder showed that they significantly endorsed higher scores on specific negative emotion regulation strategies including catastrophizing, other blame, self-blame, and rumination compared to control group. However, they endorsed lower levels of positive emotion regulation strategies compared to control groups. Also, negative emotion regulation strategies positively predicted self-harm and suicidal ideation, and positive regulation strategies negatively predicted self-harm and suicidal ideation in both groups. However, the strength of association was relatively stronger in the clinical group compared to control group.