The Role of Intermediary Strategies for Emotional Cognitive Regulation in the Relationship between Childhood Trauma and Borderline Personality Symptoms

Abstract

Introduction: Exposure to trauma, before and during puberty has specific implications for personality development and raises risk for borderline personality disorder. The aim of this study is to determine the mediating role of positive and negative cognitive emotion regulation strategies in the relationship between childhood trauma and borderline personality features. Materials and Methods: The research method was a descriptive correlational type and the statistical population consisted of all residents of the Karaj city in summer of 2017, among which 300 were chosen randomly and selected voluntarily. The study tools were the childhood trauma questionnaire, cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire, and borderline symptom list. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results: The results showed that the total path coefficient that is, sum total of the direct relationship between childhood trauma and borderline personality and the indirect relationship between these two, by mediating role of cognitive emotion regulation strategies (β=0.654, P<0.01); the direct path coefficient of the relationship between negative cognitive emotional regulation strategies and borderline personality (β=0.513, P<0.01) and the indirect path coefficient between childhood trauma and borderline personality that is, the indirect relationship by mediating role of negative emotion regulation strategies (β=0.550, P<0.01) are positive and significant at 0.01 level; In other words, it's likely to have a reason other than chance. Conclusion: Childhood trauma seems to prevent the development of cognitiveemotional regulation capabilities in a healthy way. Negative affect in people with a borderline personality disorder is the initiator of negative emotional strategies including rumination, which leads to deeper self-blame and other-blame thinking that ultimately leads to symptoms of borderline personality disorder.