Borderline Personality Disorder

Key points
- The construct of a borderline personality has undergone several transformations during the past few decades.
- These transformations reflect shifts in our understanding and revisions in our treatment of this disorder.
- Patients with borderline personality were originally thought to have a type of intrapsychic organization based on primarily psychoanalytic observations.
- The prospect of being able to understand the internal organization of such patients helped encourage the enormous rise in therapeutic enthusiasm for long-term, intensive, psychoanalytically informed treatments for these patients.
Written and revised by
David Cohen, M.D.
Our doctors write and review articles for accuracy and keep them up to date.
health.am provides general information, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your own health.
Explore health topics
More in this topic
Mental Health →
OverviewDependent Personality Disorder
Dependent Personality Disorder. Clinical interest in dependent personality disorder has existed since Abraham 1924 first described the oral character. Five types of transference and countertransference problems often arise in the treatment of dependent personality disorder
17 July 2010
OverviewHistrionic Personality Disorder
Histrionic Personality Disorder. People with Histrionic Personality Disorder have established a pattern of excessive drama, and drawing attention to themselves. The behavior is established in early adulthood. The condition is indicated by a combination of the following behaviors
15 July 2010
OverviewPersonality Disorders
Stressful situations may often result in decompensation, revealing a previously unrecognized personality disorder.






