Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 20, 2026

Use of a Psychophysiological Script-driven Imagery Experiment to Study Trauma-related Dissociation in Borderline Personality Disorder
Published on: March 8, 2018
Self-Harm, Affective Traits, and Psychosocial Functioning in Adults With Depressive and Bipolar Disorders
Marc J Weintraub1, Margaret M Van de Loo, Michael J Gitlin
1*Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida; and †Department of Psychiatry, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Semel Institute, Los Angeles, California.
Abstract:
Self-harm refers to the purposeful destruction of bodily tissue without suicidal intention and for purposes that are not socially sanctioned. Little is known about the associations between a history of self-harm, mood symptoms, and functioning in adults with different types of mood disorders. Lifetime histories of self-harm, current mood symptoms, global functioning, and affective traits were collected on 142 adults with mood disorders. The prevalence of lifetime self-harm was higher in patients with bipolar disorder compared with patients with a unipolar depressive disorder. Self-harm was also more strongly linked to impulsivity in individuals with bipolar disorder compared with unipolar depressive disorder. Across both diagnoses, histories of self-harm were related to lower levels of current global functioning, more severe depressive symptoms, and high self-reported emotional dysregulation and neuroticism. Findings indicate that self-harm is a potent prognostic variable for symptoms, global functioning, and personality functioning in individuals with mood disorders.
Related Concept Videos
Self-Discrepancy and Its Effects
Borderline Personality Disorder
Genetic and Environmental Contributions
Borderline Personality...
Bipolar Disorder
Traits, Mood, and Subjective Wellbeing
Neuroticism and...
Personality Disorders: Schizotypal and Histrionic
Schizotypal Personality Disorder: Eccentric Behavior and Social Withdrawal
Schizotypal personality disorder is marked by odd or eccentric...
Self-Discrepancy Theory

