Reliability and Validity of the Life Problems Inventory, A Self-Report Measure of Borderline Personality Features, in a College Student Sample

Rathus, Wagner, and Miller recently reported on the development and psychometric evaluation of the Life problems Inventory (LPI), a self report tool to measure Linehan’s conceptualition of borderline personality disorder (BPD) as a disorder primarily of the emotion regulation system, and in particular, problems with regulation of emotions, impulses, relationships, and self. Thus, the LPI maps onto the content of her skills training component of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), with scales assessing problems addressed in DBT skills modules targeting emotion regulation, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness, and mindfulness. The present study furthers the investigation of the LPI’s psychometrics by examining internal consistency, test-retest reliability, convergent validity with depression, suicidality and mindfulness, and discriminant validity with social desirability in an adolescent/young adult, non-clinical, suburban college student sample (N = 99). The LPI was found to be internally consistent, stable over a two-week retest interval, and related in expected ways with clinical constructs. We discuss implications for further development and application of the LPI and its utility in a college population.