Body image and borderline personality disorder among psychiatric inpatients

Objective

With the exclusion of studies in individuals with eating disorders, few investigators have examined body image issues in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). In this study, we examined among psychiatric inpatients relationships between body image and BPD.

Method

In a cross-sectional sample of convenience, we surveyed 126 women in an inpatient psychiatric unit using 5 measures for body image and 2 measures for BPD.

Results

Using standardized cutoffs for BPD diagnosis, participants with BPD demonstrated a number of differentiating features with regard to body image issues. Explicitly, BPD did not seem to be related to being self-conscious about one's appearance, although BPD was related to being more self-conscious, in general. Individuals with BPD were not more invested in their appearance as a source of self-definition but evaluated their own appearance more negatively and were more likely to believe that attractiveness is an important factor for happiness and acceptance. Although BPD was not related to perceptions about the strength and competence of one's own body, those with BPD indicated less comfort and trust in their own bodies. In general, it appeared that body image measures that were more perceptually grounded were more likely to be similar to non-BPD participants, whereas body image measures that were more cognitively grounded were more likely to be statistically significantly different in comparison with non-BPD participants.

Conclusions

Psychiatric inpatients with BPD demonstrate a number of disturbances in body image.