What is Schema Therapy?
Schema therapy was developed by Jeffrey Young PhD in 1990. Schemas are destructive themes or patterns of memories, thoughts, and feelings that begin to form during childhood or adolescence, relating to oneself or one’s environment. When not recognized, schemas tend to persist throughout life.
Our schemas shape how we see and evaluate ourselves, others, and our environment. For example, a person with an abandonment schema may live their life with the belief that they might be abandoned at any time.
As a result, this person evaluates their experiences through the preconception that they might be abandoned or may find themselves in inconsistent and unreliable relationships with a high probability of abandonment actually happening.
Schemas perpetuate themselves through thought errors and schema-feeding behaviors. People with destructive and negative schemas may wonder, “Why I always end up in the same situation?” or “Why do the same sort of things always happen to me?”
In schema therapy, we identify the ways we learned to observe and evaluate our experiences as children. We connect how this impacts our present life, and we process the emotions that lock maladaptive schemas in place to facilitate healing. The goal and intention of schema therapy is to improve relationships and allow us to enjoy and appreciate our lives to the fullest.
Guilford Publications. Schema Therapy: A Practitioner’s Guide, Jeffrey E. Young, Janet S. Klosko, and Marjorie E. Weishaar Copyright © 2003