Relationship Between Borderline Personality Disorder Features And Alexithymia

Objective:(1)To understand the outpatients’borderline personality disorder(BPD)feature, explore the relationship between BPD and depressive symptoms, alexithymia;(2)To examine that if there is any significant difference of depressive symptoms and alexithymia among the people with different levels of BPD feature;(3)To test the effect of alexithymia between BPD and depressive symptoms.Methods:The Center for Epidemiological Survey Depression Scale,Toronto Alexithymia Scale Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire Chinese version,Structured Clinical Interview For DSM-III-R Personality Disorders were applied to98outpatients from clinical psychological department. Correlate analyze,T-test,covariance analyze,and stepwise regression in the software of SPSS17.0were introduced to analyze the individual difference of BPD and the relationships among BPD,alexithymia depressive symptoms.Results:(1) The score of BPD feature was obviously positive correlated(r=0.39-0.44,P<0.01)with that of alexithymia and the subscales of difficulty identifying feelings and difficulty describing feelings, and also positive correlated with depressive symptoms and the subscales of depressive emotion; somatization and slow action and interpersonal difficulty(r=0.38-0.51,P<0.01);(2) The results of covariance analyze, after controlling the affect of general information,revealed that alexithymia and depressive symptoms of the group with BPD tendency was significant higher than the other one;(3) It appeared through the stepwise regression analyze that the main effect of BPD and interaction effect between BPD and alexithymia were both significant.Conclusion:(1)BPD feature is moderately and positively related with alexithymia and depressive symptoms;(2)alexithymia and depressive symptoms of the group with BPD tendency is significant higher than the group without BPD tendency;(3)individual alexithymia can moderate the effect of BPD on mental health, and alexithymia shows protective impact to depressive symptoms.There are6tables and60references.