Bullying Perpetration and Victimization as Social Mechanisms in the Development of Borderline Personality Traits during Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study

Abstract

Introduction: Borderline personality features are often associated with toxic social relationships and problematic peer functioning. Less is known, however, about the extent to which bullying experiences may shape the development and maintenance of borderline-related traits during crucial periods of rapid normative developments in impulse and emotion regulation skills. Given the core interpersonal character of borderline personality pathology (BPP), such research focus may be relevant to better understand possible causal social mechanisms in the development of personality difficulties within the borderline trait spectrum. Method: The current longitudinal study examined whether experiences of both bullying perpetration and victimization in pre-adolescence mediated the developmental course of BPP traits between childhood and adolescence. To examine these associations, a sample of children (N = 242; 57% girls; M_age = 10.87 years) was recruited and followed up 1 and 4 years later. Results: Mediation analysis indicated that the prospective link between child and adolescent BPP trait vulnerability was shaped by pre-adolescent experiences of bullying victimization, but not by bullying perpetration. Discussion: These results indicate that the continuity between child and adolescent borderline trait features are partly explained by exposure to bullying victimization, indicating that the impact of environmental invalidation on BPP development also extends to the peer context.