Effects of brief mindfulness and loving-kindness meditation inductions on emotional and behavioral responses to social rejection among individuals with high borderline personality traits.

People with borderline personality disorder (BPD) are especially sensitive to social rejection. This experiment tested whether brief mindfulness or loving-kindness meditation (LKM) could help. One hundred eighteen adults with high BPD traits were randomly assigned to 10 minutes of mindful breathing, LKM, or a no-instruction control before experiencing social rejection. The mindfulness group recovered faster from negative affect and feelings of rejection than the control group, and also recovered faster from negative affect than the LKM group. Groups did not differ in immediate emotional reactions or aggressive behavior. Higher baseline trait mindfulness predicted less aggression overall. Brief mindfulness may help reduce the emotional impact of social rejection in people with high BPD traits, but brief LKM showed limited benefit.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by an enduring pattern of instability across affective, behavioral, cognitive, and interpersonal domains. Individuals with BPD are known to be particularly vulnerable to experiences of social rejection, but little work has examined strategies that may moderate their reactivity to social rejection. Using a laboratory experimental approach, this study investigated the effects of brief mindfulness and loving-kindness meditation (LKM) inductions on emotional and behavioral responses to social rejection in a sample of adults with high BPD traits. One hundred and eighteen participants were randomly assigned to receive 10 min of mindful breathing practice, LKM, or a no-instruction control condition, prior to exposure to a social rejection manipulation. Participants rated their emotions and completed a competitive reaction time task, which provided a proxy measure of aggression. Compared to the control condition, the mindfulness group demonstrated significantly quicker recovery in negative affect and feelings of rejection after social rejection. The mindfulness group also reported significantly quicker recovery in negative affect compared to the LKM group. Whereas baseline trait mindfulness negatively predicted aggressive behaviors across all participants, groups did not differ in immediate emotional reactivity or aggressive behavior following social rejection. The findings suggest that mindfulness training may be a promising strategy in alleviating negative emotional effects of social rejection among individuals with high borderline personality traits, and highlight the limited utility of brief LKM practice in buffering the effects of social rejection.