Comparison of active schemas in depressed subjects with anxious subjects

Dissertation for M.A. Degree: Clinical Psychology

Abstract

Aim: The present study compares active schemas in depressed subjects with anxious subjects in students of non-profit Azad University in Rasht. The research method is correlational and post-event, comparative and cross-sectional. The statistical population of this research was all the people who were studying in the higher education centers of Gilan province in 2012-2013, and their number was about 142,000 people. According to Morgan's table, the statistical sample consists of 595 students. The sampling method in this research is stratified and random. In order to collect data, DASS questionnaire and Young schema were used. In this research, the data were analyzed in three different ways. In the main method, the three groups were compared, and in the second method, linear regression was used, and in the third method, neural network analysis was used. Findings: With a probability of error between 0.05 and 0.005, it can be accepted that anxious and depressed subjects are in the schemas of punishment, self-control/insufficient self-discipline, entitlement/greatness, failure, dependence/incompetence, Social isolation, alienation, shame defect and emotional deprivation are different and no significant difference was observed in other schemas. The only difference between the two depressed and anxious groups in the active schemas is the entitlement/secretary schema, and the difference between these two groups in this schema is significant with t=-2.401 and ?>0.050. Conclusion: The above findings showed that the entitlement/secretary schema is related to the difference between the active schema in depressed and anxious people. The significance could be predicted.

Key words: schema, depression, anxiety

Mood disorders include a wide group of disorders, of which depression is one of the most common, so that it is considered the most common psychiatric disorder. Depression is a mental illness, almost everyone has felt mildly depressed at some point in their life. Feeling down, bored, sad, hopeless, depressed, and unhappy are all common experiences of depression.  In general, personality plays an important role in effective and efficient emotional and emotional functioning (Saduk and Saduk, 2003). Therefore, during the investigations that were conducted on the personality of depressed people, Beck and his colleagues, based on numerous researches and clinical experiences, came to the conclusion that depressed people have negative thoughts about themselves, the world, their experiences and the future, they see others as rejecting and unsupportive, and they are flawed and weak in important aspects. they know This is due to the fact that people have schemas during their childhood, and these schemas make their way into the world of adulthood. In fact, the background factor of many emotional disorders is primary maladaptive schemas. When the primary maladaptive schemas are activated, levels of excitement are released and directly and indirectly lead to various forms of psychological harm. Yang (1994), one of the cognitive theorists, introduces 18 schemas and divides them into 5 areas: cut-off and rejection, impaired self-direction and performance, impaired limitations, other-orientation, and listening to excessive alarm and group inhibition. It is classified. 

Anxiety is an unpleasant and vague feeling of fear and anxiety of unknown origin, which affects a person and includes uncertainty, helplessness and physiological arousal. Anxiety occurs in a person when stressful situations in his life are too long or occur repeatedly, or when the body's nervous system cannot end the stress resistance stage and the body remains mobilized for a long time. In this case, the body becomes worn out and vulnerable to physical and mental illnesses (such as anxiety) (Kring et al., 2007). It is one of the most common and debilitating psychiatric disorders that, if left untreated, causes psychological damage and many social and economic complications for patients (translation by Khodiari Fard and Abedini, 2019).

Depressed mood, lack of interest and pleasure are the main symptoms of depression. Anxiety is one of the common symptoms of depression that affects many patients, about 90% of them (Kaplan and Sadok; translated by Rezaei, 2019). Anxiety disorder[2]; They are one of the most common psychiatric disorders in the general population.In the United States, about 30 million people suffer from this disorder, and the proportion of women is almost twice that of men (Kaplan and Sadok; translated by Reza'i, 2009).

Anxiety is a warning that makes a person listen to the alarm, that is, it warns the person that a danger is coming and causes the person to take measures to deal with the danger. The feeling of anxiety has two components: when a person is aware of his physical changes (such as heart palpitations and sweating) and when he is aware that he is nervous or scared. Anxiety often creates confusion and distortions in perception; Distortions not only in understanding time and place, but even in understanding people and the meaning and importance of events. These distortions can interfere with learning by reducing concentration, reducing the power of remembering, disrupting the power of connecting things together, i.e. associating (Kaplan and Sadok; Reza'i translation, 2019). In the field of cognitive development, the schema is considered as a template that is formed based on reality or experience to help people explain their experiences. In addition, perception is mediated through the schema, and people's responses are also directed by the schema. One of the serious and fundamental concepts of the field of psychotherapy is that many schemas are formed early in life, and they continue to move and impose themselves on later life experiences, even if they have no application. This is what is sometimes referred to as the need for cognitive consistency, that is, maintaining a stable view of oneself or others; Even if this view is incorrect or distorted. With this general definition, schema can be positive or negative, adaptive or maladaptive, and can also be formed early in life or later in life. Young (1990, 1991) believes that some of these schemas, especially those that are formed mainly as a result of adverse childhood experiences, may be the core of personality disorder, milder cognitive behavioral problems, and many chronic Axis I disorders (Yang, Klosko and Vishar; translated by Hamidporou Andoz, 2019). Therefore, the basic problem of the current research is to compare active schemas in depressed subjects with anxious subjects. 1-3-Importance and necessity of research: The necessity of conducting any research comes from the questions raised and the possible benefits of conducting that research.  In this research, we are looking for active schemas in depressed and anxious people, but our goal of this research is, do normal people also have schemas that have less pathological value?

The first episode of depression occurs in fifty percent of patients, more than forty years old, and if it starts later, it is accompanied by lack of family history, mood disorders, antisocial personality disorder, and alcohol abuse. The period of depression without treatment lasts six to thirteen months and with treatment it usually lasts about three months (Gasemzadeh, 2013).

Everyone experiences anxiety and it is a pervasive, unpleasant and vague anxiety that is often accompanied by symptoms of the autonomic system such as headache, sweating, heart palpitations, tightness in the chest, and brief stomach upset. An anxious person may also feel restlessness, which is a sign of not being able to sit or stand for a long time (Kaplan and Sadok; translated by Rezaei, 2019).

The root of the transformation of the initial incompatible schemas lies in the unfortunate experiences of childhood. The schemas that emerge first and are usually the strongest originate in nuclear families. When patients activate their original maladaptive schemas in adult life situations, they usually experience an exciting memory from their childhood. A pattern of social isolation that usually develops in late childhood and may not be a reflection of nuclear family dynamics. Schemas of emotional deprivation or abandonment arise due to defects in the primary environment. In the living environment of such a child, there is no stability, understanding or love. In the dependency/incompetence scheme, parents rarely deal with the child seriously, and the child grows up on a swan's feather and becomes spoiled. As a result, the child's emotional needs for self-management or realistic limits are not satisfied (Yang, Klosko and Vishar; translated by Hamidporou Andoz, 2019).