Attitudes Towards Parents with A Diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder

Abstract

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) has been linked to dysfunction in interpersonal skills, which can extend to parent-child relationships. Parents diagnosed with BPD are found to have higher rates of child protection involvement in comparison to laypeople, likely due to the dysfunction in interpersonal skills, as well as emotional and behavioural dysregulation, and impulsivity. However, there is little evidence examining whether this is due to the behaviour of the parent, or the attitude of the worker assessing the capability of the parent. Research has shown that BPD carries a significant amount of stigma. Stigma is especially problematic for individuals with BPD as they can view this distancing as rejection, which can cause them to react negatively, further perpetuating the symptoms and thereby the stigma. As there are little known standardised procedures for parenting capacity assessments (PCAs) within the child protection sector, the likelihood of stigma contributing to the decision-making process is high. This study aimed to examine this using a set of vignettes (one with BPD vs one with post-natal depression) followed by a PCA adapted from previous literature, and multiple measures examining participants attitudes towards BPD. The sample included current, past and prospective child protection workers. The results show that stigma is significantly associated with BPD, and that stigma is heavily associated with treatment optimism. However, overall attitudes of BPD do not have a significant impact on stigma relating to BPD. Interestingly, there were a wide range of differences between professionals, and prospective workers, indicating experience also effects stigma. Keywords: borderline personality disorder, child protective services, parenting capacity assessments, stigma, mental illness