The role of impulsivity and emotion regulation difficulties in predicting nonsuicidal self-injury and borderline personality disorder symptoms

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and borderline personality disorder (BPD) are complex mental health problems with common developmental pathways. Adverse childhood environments coupled with trait impulsivity and emotion dysregulation have been shown to increase the risk of NSSI and BPD (e.g., Chapman, 2019; Crowell et al., 2009, 2014). The primary aim of this study was to examine models of the association of these risk factors with NSSI and BPD over a one-year period among young adults (N = 261; aged 18-35; 75.9% female). Participants completed measures of relevant variables at baseline and at 4 follow-ups over 12-months. Consistent with hypotheses, multilevel modelling analyses indicated that emotion regulation difficulties (ERD) mediated the association of CM with both NSSI and BPD. Contrary to hypotheses, impulsivity did not moderate the association of CM with ED. These findings highlight the importance of ERD in the course of NSSI and BPD among young adults.