This BPD trait is one of the main characteristics of the disorder and one that accounts for a lot of the shifts in opinion & moods of someone with BPD.

 

Dichotomous / Polarized thinking, it is also known as the “black or white thinking” style which leads people with BPD to view others and themselves in “all or nothing” terms and can often change in a split second - leaving both the Borderline and the other party to be left feeling confused!This kind of behaviour / cognitive process for the Borderline is often referred to as Splitting.

 

This trait can lead to many problems for the Borderline and is an impediment to considering multiple conclusions and can lead to the regarding of people and situations as either completely "good" or completely "bad" which in turn can lead to the breakdown of relationships.

 

An example of this is when a person with BPD may put another person - partner, friend, therapist - on a pedestal, believing them to be more incredibly perfect and wonderful than they could possibly be in real life, but of course, no one can stay “perfect” for long. The perfect person will inevitably do something that the Borderline will view as being out of character or "wrong" which may then lead them to question their own judgement, the other persons intent & motives or to become jealous. 

 

These "triggers" can then lead the Borderline into viewing the once admired person as the completely opposite -evil or an enemy.Although there is often some justification presented by the person with B.P.D. for their sudden change of heart, their logic is often flawed, contradictory or incomplete due to the many "grey areas" that people and life can both present.

 

The core of splitting behavior is the inability to hold opposing thoughts and feelings about self and others and is generally regarded as an unconscious defense that relates not only to cognitive processes but also to the processing of emotions and memory; and is thought to be linked to uncertainty avoidance and intolerance of ambiguity which are related toideological orientation -( we NEED consistent & precise explanations/views on both people & situations so that we can make sense of the information we are being given.) It may also be connected to the attachment-abandonment issues that many people with BPD experience due to unstable relationships they have dealt with in their past.

 

For someone without BPD, as they mature, the need for a definite "yes" or "no" decreases, and multiple possibilities and variations on a theme become tolerable. For people with BPD however, only when they are able to recognize what they are feeling, and how this relates to what they are doing, will they begin to develop more mature and stable psychological structures. 

 

Exploration and insight into the developmental and genetic roots can often facilitate this process, leading to a world less split. This can be done through therapies such as CBT or DBT, which will look at how how people with BPD react and respond to ambiguous situations - situations that involve uncertainty - by getting the Borderline to notice / acknowledge the splitting thoughts and helping them consider the "bigger picture".