Comparative Study of Early Maladaptive Schemas in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients and Normal Adults

Early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) designed to assess early distress. EMSs are at the core of personality pathology and psychological distress. The main objective of this study was to find out the differences between rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and normal adults on EMSs. 100 RA patients and 100 normal adults completed Young’s Schema Questionnaire developed by Jeffery Young (1998). The results showed that data was subjected to statistical analysis; T- test showed that the RA patients reported a significantly greater severity of early maladaptive schemata than the normal subjects. This study suggested that a remarkable amount of RA patients may suffer from EMSs which have an effect on their pain situation. These findings confirm those pieces of evidence indicating the psychological treatments included in multidisciplinary programs for this disorder