Communication Between Individuals With Borderline Personality Disorder and Their Partners

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by frequent and intense conflict in intimate relationships. Emerging theoretical perspectives have suggested that communication from both individuals with BPD and their partners during times of conflict may exacerbate BPD pathology and therefore reflect an important target for intervention. Communication samples between individuals with BPD and their partners (N = 18 couples) who were seeking conjoint therapy were coded using the Rapid Marital Interactions Coding System-2. No differences were found in the amount of positive, constructive or hostile communication between individuals with BPD and their partners, and both partners used significantly more constructive communication than positive or hostile, though they were misaligned in their use of constructive communication. These findings challenge the notion that individuals with BPD communicate in a more hostile or conflictual way than their partners, despite the stigma they face in healthcare and community settings.