Borderline personality disorder features include which of the following?

Borderline personality disorder features include which of the following?

• A. Social inhibition
• B. Fear of abandonment
• C. Lack of empathy
• D. Splitting and unstable affect

Answer: (D)

Borderline personality disorder is defined by emotional instability and highly volatile relationships. Splitting is a key defense mechanism in which people are seen in extremes—either all good or all bad—leading to rapid, dramatic shifts in how someone perceives others and treats them. Unstable affect means emotions that swing quickly and intensely, with difficulty returning to baseline. This combination drives the intense fear of abandonment and the repeated cycles of idealization and devaluation that characterize the interpersonal chaos often seen with this disorder. While fear of abandonment can be present and is important to assess, it doesn’t by itself capture the ongoing emotional lability and the dichotomous thinking that splitting represents. Social inhibition and lack of empathy aren’t core features of borderline personality disorder, which is why the pairing of splitting and unstable affect best reflects its hallmark pattern.

Borderline personality disorder is defined by emotional instability and highly volatile relationships. Splitting is a key defense mechanism in which people are seen in extremes—either all good or all bad—leading to rapid, dramatic shifts in how someone perceives others and treats them. Unstable affect means emotions that swing quickly and intensely, with difficulty returning to baseline. This combination drives the intense fear of abandonment and the repeated cycles of idealization and devaluation that characterize the interpersonal chaos often seen with this disorder. While fear of abandonment can be present and is important to assess, it doesn’t by itself capture the ongoing emotional lability and the dichotomous thinking that splitting represents. Social inhibition and lack of empathy aren’t core features of borderline personality disorder, which is why the pairing of splitting and unstable affect best reflects its hallmark pattern.