The relationship between early maladaptive schemas and identity styles in male students

If the identity formation in teenagers is guided، it can help facilitate facing the identity conflicts and overcoming the problems in this period. The present study was an attempt to examine the relationship between early maladaptive schemas and identity styles in teenagers in Sanandaj، Iran. The present study was a correlational descriptive one with 160 third grade high school students selected using multi-stage cluster sampling. Participants were asked to respond to Young’s Early Maladaptive Schema and Berzonsky’s Identity Style questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and multiple regression statistical tests. The results showed a significant relationship between early maladaptive schemas and identity styles. Also the multiple regression analysis showed that over vigilance/inhibition and other tendencies are having the highest power in predicting identity styles. Supporting the early maladaptive schema theory، the result of this study showed that these schemas could be a good predictor for identity styles in teenagers. As such، interventions based on such schemas can be helpful in guiding the formation of identity styles and resolving identity crisis in teenagers.