ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a comprehensive description of BPD (borderline personality disorder), including a historical perspective, statistics, diagnostic criteria and co-morbid conditions. It begins with the history of the diagnosis, summarising how it developed and was first acknowledged in psychiatry. Its statistics within the population are then presented and the aetiology of the disorder explored. The diagnostic process and the most recent definitions offered by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are then shared and symptoms and co-morbid disorders identified. The information in this chapter will provide the reader with a solid understanding of the client group.
