Emotion Dysregulation and Parent Emotion Socialization in Mothers with Borderline Pathology

Mothers with borderline personality disorder face unique challenges in parenting, as borderline symptoms have been shown to negatively affect parent-child relationships. These challenges can lead to non-supportive reactions to children's negative emotions, a form of parent emotion socialization (PES) that has been linked to negative outcomes in children. Given the inherent emotional arousal evoked by parenting, emotion dysregulation likely influences the type of PES parents utilize. However, no studies have specifically examined how emotion dysregulation affects PES in mothers with borderline pathology. Against this background, this study aims to (1) investigate the link between maternal emotion dysregulation and PES strategies and (2) assess if emotion dysregulation mediates the relationship between borderline pathology and PES.

The study sample was comprised of 148 mothers (Mage = 34.92). Of these mothers, 53 had significant borderline features. Emotion regulation was evaluated using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale - Short Form and PES was assessed using the Coping with Children's Negative Emotion Scale. Significant borderline features were determined using the Personality Assessment Inventory Borderline Scale. As a part of aim 1, bivariate correlations were conducted to examine relationships between emotion dysregulation and two PES strategies: supportive and non-supportive. The moderating role of emotion dysregulation on the relationships between borderline features and supportive and non-supportive PES was assessed using two moderation models.

Results from the first aim revealed a small, negative correlation between emotion dysregulation and supportive PES and a medium, positive correlation between emotion dysregulation and non-supportive PES. Emotion dysregulation was found to be a significant moderator of the relationship between borderline pathology and non-supportive PES.

The current study significantly contributes to the literature by further elucidating the relationship between maternal borderline pathology and PES and its underlying mechanisms.