title: Self-stigma in women with borderline personality disorder and women with social phobia.
abstract: Little is known about how women with borderline personality disorder (BPD) and women with social phobia react to mental illness stigma. The goal of this study was to assess empirically self-stigma and its correlates in these groups. Self-stigma and related constructs were measured by self-report questionnaires among 60 women with BPD and 30 women with social phobia. Self-stigma was inversely related to self-esteem, self-efficacy, and quality of life and predicted low self-esteem after controlling for depression and shame-proneness. Stereotype awareness was not significantly correlated with self-esteem or quality of life. While there was no difference in stereotype awareness between women with BPD and women with social phobia, women with BPD showed higher self-stigma than women with social phobia. Self-stigma is associated with low self-esteem and other indices of poor psychological well-being. In comparison to women with social phobia, women with BPD suffer from more self-stigma. This may reflect intense labeling processes as being mentally ill due to repeated hospitalizations, frequent interpersonal difficulties, and visible scars.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg, Germany. nicolas_ruesch@psyallg.ukl.uni-freiburg.de
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rüsch
authors.forename: Aurelia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hölzer
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hermann
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schramm
authors.forename: Gitta A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Jacob
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bohus
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lieb
authors.forename: Patrick W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Corrigan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001364:Awareness; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008960:Models, Psychological; D010551:Personality / Q000145:classification; D010555:Personality Inventory; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012649:Self Concept; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012737:Sex Factors; D012752:Shame; D013240:Stereotyping; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires