Social cognition and executive function in borderline personality disorder: evidence of altered cognitive processes

Zegarra-Valdivia, Jonathan Adrián; Vilca, Brenda Nadia Chino · 2019 · Crossref

DOI: 10.17711/sm.0185-3325.2019.005

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

Get this paper ↗ (DOI — opens at the source; we link to it, we don't host it)

Summary

This study investigates the cognitive profiles of individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD), specifically focusing on social cognition (SC) and executive function (EF). The research was motivated by contradictory and insufficient evidence regarding deficit patterns in these domains within the BPD population. The primary objective was to assess the contribution of SC and EF to socio-emotional and cognitive patterns in BPD and to examine relationships between these cognitive processes and clinical features. The study employed a comparative design involving 20 female patients with BPD in ambulatory hospitalization and 20 healthy female controls. Participants were matched for age and education level. The clinical group had a mean disease duration of nearly 12 years and high rates of suicidal attempts and substance use history. A neuropsychological battery was administered to evaluate specific cognitive domains. Social cognition was assessed using the “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” test for theory of mind and the Iowa Gambling Task for decision-making mediated by somatic markers. Executive function was evaluated using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, verbal fluency tasks (semantic and phonological), the Digit Span Test, and the Trail Making Test (Forms A and B). Statistical analyses included Mann-Whitney U tests for group comparisons and Spearman correlations to link cognitive scores with clinical variables such as suicidal attempts and disease duration. The results demonstrated statistically significant impairments in both social cognition and executive function among BPD patients compared to controls. In social cognition, BPD patients showed significantly worse performance in recognizing mental states (intentions, thoughts, and emotions) via gaze, although basic perceptual skills (sex recognition) remained intact. In the Iowa Gambling Task, patients exhibited significantly poorer performance in later blocks, indicating an inability to learn from negative feedback and increased impulsivity. Executive function deficits were widespread: BPD patients scored significantly lower on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test across multiple metrics, including success percentage, conceptual responses, and categories completed, while showing higher error and perseverative response rates. Significant differences were also found in the Trail Making Test (slower execution times) and verbal fluency tasks. Correlation analyses revealed that the number of suicidal attempts was negatively correlated with theory of mind scores and Iowa Gambling Task performance, and positively correlated with executive function errors. The study concludes that women with BPD exhibit distinct alterations in social cognition and executive function, characterized by impaired mentalizing and poor decision-making strategies. These findings suggest that specific subdomains of SC and EF may serve as valid endophenotypes for BPD. The authors propose that these cognitive processes are critical targets for future research and rehabilitation efforts, offering a more precise understanding of the neuropsychological underpinnings of the disorder beyond clinical symptomatology.

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed.

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-26; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• executive function