ABSTRACT
In schema therapy, modes are proposed as a key concept and main target for treatment of personality disorders. The present study aimed to assess a comprehensive set of 20 modes, to explore their higher-order structure, and to link the mode factors to the generic schema factor and basic personality traits. The sample consisted of N = 533 inpatients. Earlier versions of the Schema Mode Inventory (SMI, SMI-2) were merged into the German Extended SMI (GE-SMI). Item-level confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the structure of 16 out of 20 GE-SMI scales might be unidimensional. Scale-level exploratory factor analysis revealed three hierarchically structured mode factors: internalization, externalization, and compulsivity. Regressing mode factor scores on the Big Five factors and the generic schema factor supported the validity of the mode factors. The hierarchical structure of modes will be linked to the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology, and implications for case conceptualization and treatment will be discussed.
Subject(s)
Defense Mechanisms , Inpatients/statistics & numerical data , Personality Disorders/classification , Personality Disorders/therapy , Adaptation, Psychological , Concept Formation , Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , Factor Analysis, Statistical , Humans , Male , Personality Disorders/diagnosis , Personality Disorders/psychology , PsychopathologyABSTRACT
Maladaptive schema modes (or modes) are a key concept in schema therapy; they reflect sets of currently activated maladaptive schemas, schema-evoked emotional distress, and coping attempts. Drawing on a set of 20 modes, this study aimed to replicate personality disorder (PD)-specific mode models, to investigate relationships among modes, higher order mode factors (i.e., Internalization, Externalization, and Compulsivity), and defense styles and to test the contributions of higher order mode factors and defense styles to variance in PD symptoms. The sample consisted of N = 533 German-speaking psychiatric inpatients. A total of 67 practically significant correlations between 20 modes and 10 PD scores were found (range: |.44| to |.76|), and 36 out of 47 hypothesized PD-mode associations were confirmed. In a series of 23 regression analyses, the immature, neurotic, and mature defense styles showed 23, 10, and 12 significant effects on mode variables, respectively. Defense styles jointly accounted for 9.0% to 42.4% of variance in mode variables after controlling for the effects of age and sex, implying that modes and defense styles are related yet distinguishable constructs. Finally, mode factors and defense styles independently accounted for unique variance in all 10 PD scores, with mode factors contributing significantly more to variance in antisocial, obsessive-compulsive, and avoidant PD symptoms. Implications of the results for theory and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).