McLean Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder

The McLean Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder (MSI-BPD) is a standardized, diagnostic rating scale designed to screen for borderline personality disorder (BPD) in those 15 years old or older. It is a self-report questionnaire that asks individuals to report the presence of symptoms they experienced that are characteristic of BPD. The assessment was released in 2003 after being developed by Mary C. Zanarini and her colleagues at the McLean Hospital.

Scoring

The MSI-BPD is a 10-item screening tool designed to assess for Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) symptoms. The questionnaire covers a broad spectrum of BPD characteristics, including impulsivity, emotional instability, and difficulties with self-identity. Each question is answered with a simple "yes" or "no", corresponding to the presence or absence of a specific BPD symptom. A "yes" response on any item indicates an endorsement of that particular symptom. Scores are obtained by summing the values assigned to each answer (1 for yes, 0 for no), resulting in a total score ranging from 0 to 10.

Research suggests the MSI-BPD demonstrates good accuracy in identifying potential BPD cases. Zanarini's 2003 found the instrument to be both sensitive (81%) and specific (85%) in correctly classifying individuals without psychosis or mania. HEr study also found MSI-BPD also exhibits strong internal consistency.