Self-Other Distinction in Individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder

Self-other distinction (SOD) refers to the ability to disentangle self-related from other-related mental representations. According to a theoretical framework, individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) exhibit impaired self-other distinction (De Meulemeester et al., 2021). The main aim of this preregistered study is to test the theoretical assumption that SOD impairment is more pronounced in individuals with BPD compared to healthy individuals. This study builds on our previous work conducted with healthy participants (Pronizius et al., 2022).

Current Status: Data collection for the BPD sample has been completed (N = 120), and data collection for healthy controls is ongoing.

Media and Collaboration Requests: Please forward all inquiries to ekaterina.pronizius@univie.ac.at

 Self-Other Distinction Self-Report Questionnaire (SOD-SRQ)

Individual differences in SOD capacities have been observed in various psychiatric disorders and are empirically evidenced using experimental paradigms that induce egocentric and altercentric biases. To develop a more practical and ecological measure of SOD, we—a multicentric international team investigating SOD in borderline personality disorder—created a self-report questionnaire (SOD-SRQ) to capture everyday life manifestations of SOD. The items range from well-functioning SOD to clinically dysfunctional SOD.

To measure distinct components of SOD, the SOD-SRQ includes several subscales. The main four subscales are based on the intersection of two factors: the direction of self-other influence (self-to-other vs. other-to-self) and the domain of influence (emotional vs. cognitive). A fifth subscale measures self-other awareness, which assesses awareness (or confusion) about the difference between one’s own and others’ mental states.

Current Status: The study is now in wave 3 (English version) and wave 4 (German version).

Media and Collaboration Requests: Please forward all inquiries to ekaterina.pronizius@univie.ac.at.

Translation into Other Languages: Other language validations will be conducted after the final shorter set of items and the factor structure, based on the English version, is finalized. This data collection is planned for January 2025.

If you would like to translate the SOD-SRQ into your language, we will notify you once the shortened English version is ready. Researchers interested in translating the survey will be asked to submit a short research proposal, including the expected timeline and any additional measures they intend to use.