Inhibitory Control Deficits in Borderline Personality Disorder: A Meta-Analysis of Stop-Signal and Go/No-Go Tasks

Impulsivity, a multifaceted construct, is a core feature of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), associated with functional impairment and suicide mortality. Findings on motor inhibitory control, a key dimension of impulsivity, in BPD are heterogeneous. This PRISMA-guided meta-analysis examines motor inhibitory control in adults with BPD compared to healthy controls (HC), using Stop-Signal Task and Go/No-Go Task data. Thirty-seven datasets from 35 articles were included. Results from random-effect models suggest that BPD patients exhibit significantly higher motor inhibitory control deficits than HC, with a small to moderate effect size. Contrary to common assumptions, a mixed-model effect found that emotional factors did not moderate inhibitory control in BPD. Finally, the meta-analysis revealed that self-reported impulsivity measures did not correlate with task performance, suggesting that subjective and objective measures of impulsivity may assess different facets of the construct. These findings highlight the need for greater standardization of task-based measures of impulsivity, as methodological heterogeneity and quality currently limit replicability across studies.