Developmental trajectories of self-injurious behavior, suicidal behavior and substance misuse and their association with adolescent borderline personality pathology

Abstract

Objective Adolescent risk-taking and self-harm behaviors are associated with affect dysregulation and impulsivity, both core features of borderline personality disorder (BPD). We hypothesized that the developmental courses of these behaviors i) tend to cluster rather than appear individually, and ii) might indicate adolescent BPD pathology. Therefore, we explored the developmental trajectories of self-injurious behavior (SIB), suicidal behavior (SB) and substance misuse (SM) in a community sample of adolescents; and we investigated the trajectories' overlap and its associations with BPD traits. Method 513 adolescents, aged 15-17 years, were followed for two years as part of the Saving and Em..