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Treating personality fragmentation and dissociation in borderline personality disorder: A pilot study of the impact of cognitive analytic therapy
Author(s) -
Wildgoose Amanda,
Clarke Sue,
Waller Glenn
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
british journal of medical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.102
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 2044-8341
pISSN - 0007-1129
DOI - 10.1348/000711201160795
Subject(s) - borderline personality disorder , psychology , dissociation (chemistry) , personality , fragmentation (computing) , clinical psychology , psychotherapist , personality disorders , multiple personality disorder , cognition , cognitive therapy , psychiatry , psychoanalysis , chemistry , computer science , operating system
Recent findings suggest that personality fragmentation may be a core component of borderline personality disorder (BPD) and that successful treatment of BPD may depend on the extent to which this is addressed. Cognitive analytic therapy (CAT) can increase integration by strengthening awareness, and hence control, of the dissociative processes maintaining fragmentation. This pilot study aimed to conduct a systematic evaluation of the impact of CAT on BPD severity and personality integration. A patient series within‐subject design was used. Five BPD participants completed a series of assessments to evaluate the impact of therapy on BPD severity, fragmentation, dissociation, symptomatology and interpersonal adjustment before, during and following 16‐session CAT. By follow‐up, CAT had produced reductions in the severity of BPD for all five participants, and three participants showed significant changes in their levels of personality fragmentation. Improvements in comorbid disturbance were less consistent, however. Although the small number of participants involved limits these findings, they have theoretical and clinical interest. They generally support the suggestion that integration should be enhanced with BPD patients, and suggest that CAT may be a useful method to achieve this goal.