Stress Autism Mate (SAM) App for Stress Management in Adults With Borderline Personality Disorder Traits

The Effects of a Stress Management App on Enhancing Insight and Coping With Daily Stress in Adults With Borderline Personality Disorder Traits

The goal of this intervention study is to learn whether a stress management app (Stress Autism Mate, SAM) can help reduce stress and support coping in adults with borderline personality disorder traits receiving outpatient mental health care. The SAM app is a self-monitoring app designed in co-creation with and for individuals with autism, that supports users in recognizing, understanding, and managing daily stress. The app measures stress levels multiple times per day by asking what you were doing, how you were feeling and your stress signals. It offers real-time feedback and a visual overview of stress levels at both the daily and weekly level, and connecting to your activities. This allows users to recognize their own stress triggers and patterns. In addition, the app provides practical stress-reducing tips. The study focuses on changes in daily stress levels and self-reported perceived stress, coping self-efficacy, and resilience during and after use of the app.

The main questions this study aims to answer are:

1. Does using the SAM app change daily stress levels measured within the app during four weeks of use?
2. Does app use reduce perceived stress and improve coping self-efficacy and resilience after the intervention?

Participants will:

• Use the SAM app on their smartphone for four weeks
• Complete short in-app stress questionnaires multiple times per day
• Complete online questionnaires about stress, coping, and resilience at several time points
• Continue their regular outpatient treatment during the study

Inclusion Criteria:

• Presence of at least one borderline personality disorder (BPD) trait, as assessed according to DSM-5 criteria and the diagnostic guidelines of the Dutch Association of Psychiatry (NVVP)
• Age 18 years or older

Exclusion Criteria:

• inability to understand Dutch
• inability to use a smartphone