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The Borderline Syndrome Index. Clinical validity and utility
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
|May 1, 1984
Summary
The Borderline Syndrome Index (BSI) shows potential for assessing borderline personality disorder but may measure general psychopathology. Further validation is needed before widespread clinical use.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychometrics
Background:
- The Borderline Syndrome Index (BSI) is a 52-item self-report questionnaire for rapid clinical assessment of borderline syndrome.
- Previous research established the BSI's discriminative validity and preliminary norms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the BSI's applicability across the full spectrum of borderline syndrome psychopathology based on DSM-III criteria.
- To examine the relationship between demographic, treatment variables, and BSI total scores.
- To assess the BSI's construct validity and its relationship with other psychometric measures.
Main Methods:
- The study included 51 patients with borderline personality disorder, 14 with schizotypal personality disorder, 17 with both, 30 early schizophrenics, and 20 normal controls.
- Statistical analyses included group comparisons, correlational analyses, and principal component analysis of BSI items.
- The BSI scores were compared with scales from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI).
Main Results:
- All patient groups scored significantly higher on the BSI than the normal control group.
- Borderline syndrome groups were distinguishable from early schizophrenics but not from each other.
- BSI scores did not correlate significantly with demographic variables but showed some relation to treatment variables, possibly indicating chronicity effects.
- Principal component analysis and MMPI correlations suggest the BSI may measure a general psychopathology dimension, such as a deficiency in coping, rather than being specific to borderline syndrome.
Conclusions:
- The BSI demonstrates some discriminative validity but may not be a specific measure of borderline syndrome psychopathology.
- The BSI might capture a broader dimension of psychological distress, characterized by hopelessness and worthlessness.
- Further research is required to establish the BSI's validity as a specific diagnostic tool for borderline personality disorder before its widespread clinical adoption.