title: [Attentional bias and emotional suppression in borderline personality disorder].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Emotion regulation dysfunctions marked by negative affectivity are a core feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD). In addition, patients with BPD show disturbed attentional processes which become particularly apparent in the domain of selective attention when emotional stimuli are presented (negative attentional bias). Assuming that emotion regulation is linked to attentional deployment processes, this study aimed (1) to determine whether a negative attentional bias is established by using film clips of fearful faces and (2) to investigate the association between dysfunctional emotion regulation strategies (emotional suppression) and negative attention bias in BPD.
  
  
  METHODS
  We investigated 18 inpatients with BPD and 18 healthy control participants using the modified version of the fearful face-paradigm to assess the inhibition of emotional stimuli. We also administered self-report emotion regulation questionnaires.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared to the healthy controls, patients with BPD showed significant longer reaction times during the emotional versus the neutral film stimuli in the modified fearful face-paradigm. With regard to the second hypothesis, we failed to find an association between the negative attentional bias and the habitual use of emotional suppression in BPD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study, we could confirm an attentional bias for negative stimuli, using complex, dynamic material. Future studies need to address the impact of confounding variables (e. g. comorbid disorders) on the relationship between maladaptive emotion regulation and selective attentional bias.
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie Bethel, Evangelisches Krankenhaus Bielefeld, Remterweg 69-71, 33617, Bielefeld, Deutschland, silvia.fernando@evkb.de.
authors.forename: Silvia Carvalho
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Fernando
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Griepenstroh
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Urban
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Driessen
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Beblo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D004644:Emotions; D005149:Facial Expression; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008297:Male; D010552:Personality Assessment; D011930:Reaction Time; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires