Examining the Efficacy of the Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in the Treatment of Individuals With Borderline Personality Disorder

• We evaluated the efficacy of the unified protocol (UP) in individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD).
• The majority of participants no longer met criteria for BPD at follow-up.
• The UP may serve as a practice alternative for individuals with BPD.

Although an abundance of diagnosis specific protocols exist, they tend to inadvertently contribute to issues with treatment dissemination. A unified approach that can address multiple disorders simultaneously by targeting the core underlying components has been identified as a possible solution. The Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders (UP; Barlow et al., 2011) has demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of anxiety disorders and depression, and has been theorized to work in the treatment of other emotional disorders in which emotion dysregulation is a core component, including Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). In the present study, the usefulness of the UP was examined in a small sample of individuals (N = 8) with BPD by employing a multiple baseline across individuals single case experimental design. This study provided an important extension of research related to the applicability of the UP and preliminary support for its efficacy in the treatment of BPD.