title: Differentiating risk for mania and borderline personality disorder: The nature of goal regulation and impulsivity.
abstract: Researchers and clinicians have long noted the overlap among features and high comorbidity of bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder. The shared features of impulsivity and labile mood in both disorders make them challenging to distinguish. We tested the hypothesis that variables related to goal dysregulation would be uniquely related to risk for mania, while emotion-relevant impulsivity would be related to risk for both disorders. We administered a broad range of measures related to goal regulation traits and impulsivity to 214 undergraduates. Findings confirmed that risk for mania, but not for borderline personality disorder, was related to higher sensitivity to reward and intense pursuit of goals. In contrast, borderline personality disorder symptoms related more strongly than did mania risk with threat sensitivity and with impulsivity in the context of negative affect. Results highlight potential differences and commonalities in mania risk versus borderline personality disorder risk.
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry, 401 Parnassus Ave., San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Palo Alto Medical Foundation Research Institute, 2350 West El Camino Real, Mountain View, CA 94040, USA. Electronic address: daniel.fulford@ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fulford
authors.affiliation: Bipolar Clinic and Research Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, 50 Staniford St., Ste 580, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
authors.forename: Lori R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Eisner
authors.affiliation: University of California, Berkeley, Department of Psychology, 3417 Tolman Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Sheri L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior; D008297:Male; D019964:Mood Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012201:Reward; D012306:Risk; D012307:Risk Factors
keywords: Approach/avoidance motivation; Bipolar disorder; Borderline personality disorder; Goal regulation; Impulsivity