Premium
The impact of client sexual orientation and gender on clinical judgments and diagnosis of borderline personality disorder
Author(s) -
EubanksCarter Catherine,
Goldfried Marvin R.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/jclp.20265
Subject(s) - psychology , sexual orientation , borderline personality disorder , personality , gender identity , clinical psychology , orientation (vector space) , sexual identity , social psychology , human sexuality , gender studies , geometry , mathematics , sociology
Concerns have been raised that individuals who are having difficulty coming out as gay or bisexual may be misdiagnosed with borderline personality disorder. In this analogue study, 141 psychologists evaluated a hypothetical client with problems that resembled borderline symptoms but were also consistent with a sexual identity crisis. Client descriptions varied by sexual orientation and gender. Results revealed an effect of sexual orientation for male clients, but not female clients. Male clients whom therapists perceived likely to be gay or bisexual, and male clients with partners of unspecified gender, were more likely to be diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. Therapists were more confident and willing to work with female clients and gave them a better prognosis. Therapists' responses are discussed in light of gender role bias and social desirability. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 62: 751–770, 2006.