Emotional Intelligence and Coping in Patients with Borderline Personality Disorder

Abstract

Individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder struggle with emotion regulation and difficulty in accurately understanding facial expressions of others. This difficulty in regulating emotions can manifest as inappropriate anger, impulsiveness, and frequent mood swings. These behaviors may push others away and make it challenging to maintain loving and lasting relationships. Surprisingly, very little research has been carried out to explore the inter-relationships and interactions of coping and emotional intelligence in patients with borderline personality disorder. Aim: To study coping and emotional intelligence in patients with borderline personality disorder. Material and Methods: Cross sectional hospital based study, fifty patients with borderline personality disorder diagnosed as per DSM-V were selected by purposive sampling. 50 healthy matched subjects constituted the control group. Assessment was done using General Health Questionnaire, Brief COPE Questionnaire and Indian Adaptation of Emotional Intelligence Scale. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize and describe the characteristics of the data, including measures of central tendency (mean, median, mode) and measures of variability (standard deviation, range). Inferential statistics were used to make inferences about the population based on the sample data, including hypothesis testing (t-tests) and correlation analysis. The results of the analysis were presented in tables to facilitate interpretation and communication of the findings. Results: Significant differences were seen in Coping scores and Emotional Intelligence scores between the patients with borderline personality disorder group and normal control group. The patients with borderline personality disorder groups scored significantly low on coping and emotional intelligence in comparison with control group. Further, relationship between coping and emotional intelligence was found to be positively correlated. Conclusion: These findings suggest an association between low coping, emotional intelligence and borderline personality disorder. Present findings have implications for planning better intervention and prevention in this vulnerable population.