title: Attributional "Tunnel Vision" in Patients With Borderline Personality Disorder.
abstract: We aimed to examine the profile of interpersonal attributions in BPD. We hypothesized that patients show more mono-causal and internal attributions than healthy controls. A revised version of the Internal, Personal, Situational and Attributions Questionnaire was assessed in 30 BPD patients and 30 healthy controls. BPD patients and controls differed significantly in their attributional pattern. Patients displayed more mono-causal inferences, that is, they had difficulties considering alternative explanatory factors. For negative events, patients made more internal attributions compared to healthy controls. We concluded that mono-causal "trapped" thinking might contribute to (interpersonal) problems in BPD patients by fostering impulsive consequential behaviors, for example, harming one's self or others. A self-blaming tendency likely promotes depressive symptoms and low self-esteem.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Asklepios Clinic Nord-Wandsbek, Hamburg, Germany.|Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schilling
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Steffen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Moritz
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Brooke
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bierbrodt
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Asklepios Clinic Nord-Wandsbek, Hamburg, Germany.|Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nagel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010556:Personality Tests; D012649:Self Concept; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013850:Thinking