Evaluation of the Structural Model for Predicting Early Maladaptive Schemas Based on Childhood Trauma with Mediating Role of Attachment Styles in Students

The present study aims to done investigate evaluation of the structural model for predicting early maladaptive schemas based on childhood trauma with mediating role of attachment styles in students.

The statistical population of this researcher was all students who were studying in Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University in the academic year of 2020-2021. Aaccording to convenience sampling method, 380 people was selected as samples and they were asked to fill in Young schema questionnaire – short form version 3 (YSQ-S3) of Young and Brown (2005), short form of the childhood trauma questionnaire (the CTQ-SF) of Bernstein and et al (2003) and attachment styles questionnaire (ASQ) of Hazen and Shaver (1987). Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and structural equation modelling with using SPSS-24 and AMOS software was investigated.

The results showed that there is a significant relationship between childhood trauma and attachment styles with early maladaptive schemas (P <0.01). The results also showed that most of the direct paths of this study were significant and the indirect paths of childhood trauma were significant through the mediating role of attachment styles on early maladaptive schemas (RMSEA=0/072, CFI=0/935, AGFI=0/968, IFI=0/911, P-value<0/05).

Proposed model had an acceptable fitness to the data and based on current research can be used to explain the factors affecting early maladaptive schemas and also as a suitable model for designing comprehensive programs to prevent early maladaptive schemas in students.