Overview
Under the Schema Therapy model advanced by Jeffrey Young, an early maladaptive schema (EMS) is a recurring pattern or core belief that develops in childhood or adolescence that serves as a source of dysfunction throughout one’s life. Generally, these schemas are rooted in formative experiences or trauma and are strongly held in a way that shapes new information to reinforce them.
Following the Young Schema Questionnaire-Revised (YSQ-R), clinicians generally acknowledge 20 schemas:
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Abandonment or Instability
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Mistrust or Abuse
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Emotional Deprivation
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Defectiveness or Shame
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Social Isolation or Alienation
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Dependence or Incompetence
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Vulnerability to Harm or Illness
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Enmeshment or Underdeveloped Self
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Failure
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Entitlement or Grandiosity
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Insufficient Self-Control or Self-Discipline
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Subjugation
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Self-Sacrifice
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Approval-Seeking or Recognition-Seeking
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Negativity or Pessimism
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Emotional Constriction
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Fear of Losing Control
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Unrelenting Standards or Hypercriticalness
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Punitive-Self
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Punitiveness-Others