The experience of aloneness, object representation, and evocative memory in borderline and neurotic patients.

Abstract

Psychoanalytically oriented theorists have repeatedly reported observing in patients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder severe pathology in the capacity to utilize internalized imagery as a source of self-soothing. Empirical support was provided for this observation: Borderline patients demonstrated a developmentally lower capacity for object representation and evocative memory of affective object relationships, fewer positively toned representations, and a more pervasive experience of aloneness than patients with neurotic character pathology. Moreover, the experience of aloneness was the strongest clinical predictor of diagnosis, supporting the contention that inner emptiness or aloneness may be central to these patients' subjective experience.The psychoanalytic literature is meager in its coverage of the experience of inner emptiness or aloneness. For the most part, the issue is raised tangentially within the context of related subjects. As such, emptiness is viewed from a number of different theoretical perspectives, being seen as: (a) a state of libidinal deficiency (Fairbairn, 1940(Fairbairn, /1952Greenson, 1949), (b) the equivalent of the physiological state of hunger (Rado, 1928), (c) the primary state "before starting to fill up" (Winnicott, 1974, p. 106), (d) a defense against oral incorporative urges which take in the bad mother (Isaacs, 1948), (e) a state resulting Requests for reprints should be sent to

Relationship between self-soothing, aloneness, and evocative memory in bulimia nervosa

“…Richman (1986) reported a mean of 53.9 (SD = 13.2) for patients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and a mean of 39.5 (SD = 10.0) for a diagnostic group categorized as "Neurotic." The pretest scores of evocative memory capacity are similar to the reported mean of a clinical sample of borderline patients (M = 20.75, SD = 3.78) and greater than a reported mean of a clinical sample of neurotic patients (M = 17.1; SD = 3.2; Richman & Sokolove, 1992). This suggests that the sample of BN patients has a relative lack of capacity for evocative memory compared to other clinical samples, and one similar to borderline patients.…”

“…An increase in the score indicates a greater impairment in the capacity for evocative memory. The two scales were randomly combined and administered as one measure (Richman, 1986;Richman & Sokolove, 1992). Items related to the experience of aloneness included: "I feel part of a group of friends, I have a hollow feeling inside" and "All the people I know can't fill the emptiness I feel."…”

Out of the frying pan, into the fire: Mixed affective reactions to social proximity in borderline and avoidant personality disorders in daily life.

“…However, individuals with BPD are thought to lack such internalizations (Richman & Sokolove, 1992). This lack has been cited as a reason for their intolerance of aloneness (Choi-Kain et al, 2010).…”

Relationship Between Loneliness, Psychiatric Disorders and Physical Health ? A Review on the Psychological Aspects of Loneliness

“…Loneliness also potentiates other symptoms associated with BPD. The various Theories of Aloneness in BPD are The Need for Time Alone, Signaling the Need, Development of the Capacity to be Alone, The Holding Environment and Internal Representation [31,32]. Several psychoanalytic theorists have suggested that emotional deprivation plays a critical role in the development of schizoid personality disorder.…”

“…The various personality disorders associated with loneliness include borderline personality disorder and schizoid personality disorder [31,32] Intolerance of aloneness is considered a core feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Loneliness also potentiates other symptoms associated with BPD.…”