NCJ Number
138140
Journal
Canadian Journal of Psychiatry Volume: 37 Issue: 2 Dated: (March 1992) Pages: 125-128
Date Published
1992
Length
4 pages
Annotation
The role of child sexual abuse in the eitiology of borderline personality disorder (BPD) can be understood best in the context of a multivariate model in which biological vulnerability, psychological factors, and social influences as well as their interactions are considered.
Abstract
Recent reports indicate a high incidence of sexual abuse during childhood among patients with borderline personality disorder, but such abuse is not universal. Any workable model of the etiology of BPD must consider biological, developmental, and social factors. Considerable evidence suggests that patients with impulsive disorders have lower levels of activity in the serotonergic system. Further, there may be more than one area of biological vulnerability among individuals who develop BPD; there also may be different weightings. Available evidence suggests that those who develop borderline psychopathology had abnormal childhoods, but none of the factors identified in empirical studies are specific to BPD. No single risk factor can account for BPD. Children with a biological vulnerability to BPD may be more likely to suffer abuse or neglect because an irritable or impulsive child is more likely to anger or to make a parent withdraw. Insufficient weight has been given to the involvement of social factors in the etiology of BPD, but empirical studies demonstrate an important interaction between social factors and the familial/developmental factors which have been shown to increase the risk of developing BPD. 32 references