Deficits in childhood affective touch linked to borderline personality

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is linked to early relational experiences, yet the developmental impact of affective touch in childhood remains understudied.

This study investigated whether childhood and adolescent affective touch (CATE) predicts BPD symptoms through parallel mediation by interpersonal emotion regulation (ER), reinforcement sensitivity (BAS Drive and Reward Responsiveness), and serial mediation by psychological need satisfaction (PNS) and frustration (PNF).

An internationally diverse sample of 243 adults (155 females, 59 males, and 29 non-binary individuals) ranging in age from 18 to 67 years old was recruited from online social media platforms and survey recruitment sites. Participants responded to an online battery of scales that assessed affective touch, ER, BIS/BAS sensitivity, psychological need satisfaction/frustration, and BPD traits. Two parallel-serial mediation models (PROCESS Model 80) were tested.

CATE was negatively associated with BPD traits Significant independent indirect effects were observed through BAS Drive and PNF. Serial mediation paths through BAS Drive to PNF and through BAS Reward Responsiveness to PNF were not significant. In a second model, ER and PNS independently and serially mediated the CATE-BPD relationship. Direct effects of CATE on BPD symptoms remained significant BIS was excluded due to non-significant correlation with CATE.

Findings imply that deficits in affective touch experiences in childhood linked to insecure attachment may play a role in diminished tactile sensitivity. This decreased sensitivity could potentially account for the self-harming tendencies observed in individuals displaying borderline traits.