Emotion Processing in Borderline Personality Disorders

This study examined relationships between the ability to recognize facial affect and affective intensity in women with Borderline Personality Disorder. Women hospitalized with borderline personality disorder and community women without psychiatric disorder (n s = 35/group) were recruited via convenience sampling. The Pictures of Facial Affect and the Affect Intensity Measure were administered to consenting women. Hypotheses related to differences in recognizing facial affect were supported, but further exploration indicated that selected negative emotions accounted for the statistical significance. Implications for practice and research are explored.