Otto Kernberg (1975) described Borderline Personality Organization (BPO) as a stable psychological structure distinct from neurotic and psychotic ranges. Such individuals are prone to loss of reality testing and delusional ideas restricted to the transference, immature splitting defenses leading to lack of anxiety tolerance, poor impulse control, ego weakness and pathological internalized object relations.

The BPO organizes the individual’s behavior, perceptions and subjective experience. BPO’s central characteristic is the nature and degree of integration of the sense of self and others. In Transference Focused Psychotherapy (TFP), the function of the patient’s personality organization is assessed in the Assessment and Treatment phases and the treatment goals guide the patient to advance from abnormal personality functioning towards normal functioning.

Meet the expert

Dr Yeomans is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist and clinical associate professor at Weill Cornell Medical College. He is a key author, along with John Clarkin and Otto Kernberg, of a clinical guide on TFP for borderline personality disorder.

Zoom link will be provided 1 hour prior to the session.