[Whose borderline is it? Hypothesized etiologies of borderline personality]

Borderline personality is a well known concept in psychiatric literature, however, not fully understood as to its very nature. This article presents a short review of hypothesized etiologies of the borderline personality, starting with so called traditional theories, namely, borderline personality as a consolidated personality organization, in which the patient pathologically deals with his or her inner aggression, or with an enduring developmental failure. More modern hypotheses focus on possible childhood sexual abuse as the origin of the borderline, viewing the adult personality as a chronic, unresolved, post-traumatic disorder. Additionally, a neuro-epigenetic view hypothesized that a unique congenital neurological structure interacts with consequential events in early childhood to create the borderline personality.