Table 2.
Mean DSQ Defense Scores among Borderline Patients and Axis II Comparison Subjects
| BPD (N=290) | OPD (N=72) | BPD vs. OPD | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defense | Mean | SD | Mean | SD | z-score | p-value |
| Vaillant’s Mature Defenses | ||||||
| Altruism | 6.54 | 2.29 | 5.77 | 2.44 | 2.52 | NS |
| Anticipation | 5.47 | 1.99 | 5.43 | 1.84 | 0.06 | NS |
| Humor | 4.75 | 1.78 | 4.68 | 1.81 | 0.49 | NS |
| Sublimation | 4.08 | 2.48 | 4.03 | 2.54 | 0.15 | NS |
| Suppression | 4.52 | 1.88 | 5.29 | 1.68 | −3.24 | 0.0012 |
| Vaillant’s Neurotic Defenses | ||||||
| Isolation | 4.22 | 1.56 | 3.67 | 1.60 | 2.60 | NS |
| Reaction Formation | 4.57 | 1.32 | 4.01 | 1.43 | 2.75 | NS |
| Undoing | 4.61 | 1.81 | 3.11 | 1.29 | 6.50 | <0.0001 |
| Vaillant’s Immature Defenses | ||||||
| Acting Out | 5.61 | 1.61 | 3.91 | 1.56 | 7.37 | <0.0001 |
| Denial | 4.20 | 1.10 | 3.93 | 0.92 | 1.97 | NS |
| Emotional Hypochondriasis | 4.90 | 1.73 | 3.34 | 1.39 | 6.65 | <0.0001 |
| Fantasy | 4.15 | 2.55 | 3.84 | 2.91 | 1.21 | NS |
| Passive Aggression | 4.24 | 1.23 | 3.58 | 1.26 | 4.11 | <0.0001 |
| Projection | 3.36 | 1.22 | 2.38 | 1.06 | 6.39 | <0.0001 |
| Image Distorting or Borderline Defenses | ||||||
| Devaluation | 2.36 | 1.64 | 2.23 | 1.84 | 1.35 | NS |
| Omnipotence | 2.53 | 1.30 | 2.49 | 1.51 | 0.66 | NS |
| Primitive Idealization | 3.49 | 2.11 | 2.94 | 1.94 | 1.92 | NS |
| Projective Identification | 3.98 | 2.79 | 2.85 | 2.58 | 3.32 | 0.0009 |
| Splitting | 3.40 | 1.83 | 2.54 | 1.51 | 3.65 | 0.0003 |
Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons (.05/19) indicates significance level of p<0.0026