The Relationship Between Non-suicidal Self-injury and Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms in a College Sample

Background: Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a major concern in both clinical and non-clinical populations. It has been approximated that 65-80% of individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) engage in some form of NSSI. Despite such high co-morbidity, much still remains unknown about the relationship between NSSI and BPD symptomatology. The goal of the current study was to identify individual BPD symptoms and higher order BPD factors that increase one's vulnerability of NSSI engagement among a college sample. It was hypothesized that the BPD factor of emotion dysregulation and the BPD symptoms of affect instability and intense anger/aggression would be associated with the presence and frequency of NSSI.

Method: Seven hundred twenty four undergraduates (61.2% female) completed self-report measures of BPD symptomology and NSSI history.

Results: Regression analyses revealed that among the individual BPD symptoms, past suicidality, impulsivity, chronic emptiness, and identity disturbance were each significantly, positively associated with lifetime history of NSSI, whereas unstable relationships were negatively associated with lifetime history of NSSI. The BPD symptom associated with NSSI frequency was dissociation. Among the BPD factors, emotion dysregulation and disturbed relatedness were both associated with NSSI history, but only disturbed relatedness was associated with NSSI frequency.

Conclusion: Findings show partial support for the importance of emotion dysregulation in the relationship between NSSI and BPD symptomatology, but also suggest that the relationship may be more complex and not solely based on emotion dysregulation.