Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Email this article to a Colleague Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to My Articles & Searches Download to citation manager Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Articles by Herpertz, S. C. Articles by Sass, H. Search for Related Content PubMed Citation Articles by Herpertz, S. C. Articles by Sass, H. Borderline Personality Disorders Symptoms/Dimensions

Affective Responsiveness in Borderline Personality Disorder: A Psychophysiological Approach

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to investigate affective responses to emotional stimuli in subjects with borderline personality disorder. METHOD: Twenty-four female patients with borderline personality disorder and 27 normal female comparison subjects were examined. The test stimuli were a set of standardized photographic slides with pleasant, neutral, or unpleasant emotional valence. In addition to self-reports, emotional reactions to the slides were measured by heart rate, skin conductance, and startle response. Psychometric tests for various aspects of impulsiveness were also completed. RESULTS: Neither self-report nor physiological data gave any evidence that the borderline patients showed more intense affective responses than did the normal subjects. The borderline subjects did not produce higher levels of startle amplitude, and while viewing unpleasant slides, they showed a startle potentiation effect that was largely similar to that of the comparison group. In fact, the borderline patients showed low electrodermal responses to all three stimulus categories, which points to physiological underarousal. CONCLUSIONS: The results do not agree with the hypothesis that there is a fundamental, biologically based affective hyperresponsiveness in borderline personality disorder, as is suggested by current theories of affect dysregulation in the disorder. Autonomic underarousal may seriously interfere with a flexible adaptation to environmental stimuli.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. J. Hilz, O. Devinsky, H. Szczepanska, J. C. Borod, H. Marthol, and M. Tutaj Right ventromedial prefrontal lesions result in paradoxical cardiovascular activation with emotional stimuli Brain, December 1, 2006; 129(12): 3343 - 3355. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. C. Herpertz, B. Mueller, M. Qunaibi, C. Lichterfeld, K. Konrad, and B. Herpertz-Dahlmann Response to Emotional Stimuli in Boys With Conduct Disorder Am J Psychiatry, June 1, 2005; 162(6): 1100 - 1107. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. C. Herpertz, U. Werth, G. Lukas, M. Qunaibi, A. Schuerkens, H.-J. Kunert, R. Freese, M. Flesch, R. Mueller-Isberner, M. Osterheider, et al. Emotion in Criminal Offenders With Psychopathy and Borderline Personality Disorder Arch Gen Psychiatry, August 1, 2001; 58(8): 737 - 745. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Get information about faster international access.

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 1999 American Psychiatric Association. All rights reserved.

Home | Search | Current Issue | Past Issues | Subscribe | All APPI Journals | Help | Contact Us