Abstract

There is growing evidence that features of borderline personality disorder (BPD) emerge in childhood and present long-term risk for the development of BPD. Thus, valid and reliable assessments of BPD features in childhood are needed. This study examined the psychometric properties of the parent version of the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children (BPFS-P) in a large, representative sample (N = 1,050; 51.5% male; M_age = 8.42, SD = 2.31; Age_range = 5 to 12 years). The factor structure of the BPFS-P was examined, and measurement invariance was tested across child age and sex as well as caregiver informant sex. Additionally, the unique contribution of the identified factors of the BPFS-P to overall impairment and need for treatment beyond co-occurring dimensions of additional psychopathology was examined. A one factor structure was identified, which demonstrated measurement invariance across child sex and age as well as caregiver informant sex. BPD features measured with the BPFS-P contributed unique variance to explaining overall impairment and need for treatment. These findings point to the potential of the BPFS-P to break new ground in identifying youth at risk for BPD.

摘要

越来越多的证据表明，边缘型人格障碍 (BPD) 的特征出现在儿童时期，并为 BPD 的发展带来长期风险。因此，需要对儿童时期的 BPD 特征进行有效和可靠的评估。本研究在一个大型代表性样本（N  = 1,050；51.5% 男性；M_年龄= 8.42，SD  = 2.31；年龄_范围）中检查了父母版本的儿童边缘人格特征量表 (BPFS-P) 的心理测量特性= 5 至 12 年）。检查了 BPFS-P 的因子结构，并测试了儿童年龄和性别以及照料者信息提供者性别的测量不变性。此外，还检查了 BPFS-P 的已识别因素对整体损伤和治疗需求的独特贡献，超出了其他精神病理学的共同发生维度。确定了一种单因素结构，该结构证明了跨儿童性别和年龄以及照料者信息提供者性别的测量不变性。用 BPFS-P 测量的 BPD 特征有助于解释整体损伤和治疗需求的独特方差。这些发现表明 BPFS-P 有可能在识别有 BPD 风险的青年方面开辟新天地。