title: Attachment and Reflective Functioning in Women With Borderline Personality Disorder.
abstract: Insecure attachment and impairments in reflective functioning (RF) are thought to play a critical role in borderline personality disorder (BPD). In particular, the mentalization-based model argues that insecure attachment indirectly accounts for increased BPD features, notably via disruption of RF capacities. Although the mediation relationship between attachment, RF, and BPD is supported by previous evidence, it remains to be directly tested in adults with BPD. In the current study, a sample of 55 female adult BPD patients and 105 female healthy controls completed a battery of self-report measures to investigate the interplay between attachment, RF capacities, and BPD clinical status. Overall, the results showed that BPD patients pre- dominantly reported insecure attachment, characterized by negative internal working models of the self as unlovable and unimportant to others, and decreased RF abilities. Our findings further indicated that actual RF capacities mediated the relationships between adult insecure attachment and BPD clinical status.
authors.affiliation: Developmental Clinical Psychology Unit, Faculty of Psychology, University of Geneva, Switzerland, and Office Médico-Pédagogique Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva School of Medicine.
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Badoud
authors.affiliation: Program TRE, Service of Psychiatric Specialties, Department of Mental Health and Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Geneva.
authors.forename: Paco
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Prada
authors.affiliation: Program TRE, Service of Psychiatric Specialties, Department of Mental Health and Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Geneva.
authors.forename: Rosetta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Nicastro
authors.affiliation: Program TRE, Service of Psychiatric Specialties, Department of Mental Health and Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Geneva.
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Germond
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London.|Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Luyten
authors.affiliation: Program TRE, Service of Psychiatric Specialties, Department of Mental Health and Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Geneva.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva.
authors.forename: Nader
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Perroud
authors.affiliation: Developmental Clinical Psychology Unit, Faculty of Psychology, University of Geneva, Switzerland, and Office Médico-Pédagogique Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva School of Medicine.|Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Debbané
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D000076563:Mentalization / Q000502:physiology*; D009769:Object Attachment; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D056345:Theory of Mind / Q000502:physiology; D013850:Thinking / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult