The relationship between perceived parental attitudes, early period maladaptive schemas, cognitive flexibility and mental health problems in adolescents

Sciences, Department of Mental Health and Disease Nursing, Master's Thesis, VAN, 2025. This study was conducted in a cross-sectional and relational survey design to examine the relationship between perceived parental attitudes, early maladaptive schemas, cognitive flexibility and mental health problems in adolescents. The population of the study consisted of adolescents studying in high schools in Van city center in the 2023-2024 academic year. The sample was determined using stratified random sampling method and consisted of 643 adolescent students (320 male, 323 female) studying in high schools in İpekyolu, Edremit and Tuşba districts. Data were collected using Personal Information Form, Young Parenting Scale, Young Early Maladaptive Schema Scale-Short Form, Cognitive Flexibility Inventory and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. The data were analyzed using SPSS 27.0 and PROCESS macro programs. According to the findings of the study, the most common attitudes in adolescents' perceptions of their mothers were Conditional/Achievement-Oriented, Overprotective/Accepting, and Regulative/Indulgent, while the most common attitudes in their perceptions of their fathers were Conditional/Achievement-Oriented, Closed to Change/Suppressing Emotions, and Regulative/Indulgent. The mean score of the participants on the Cognitive Flexibility Inventory was found to be 68.01±13.82. The early maladaptive schema areas with the highest mean scores were Privilege/Inadequate Self-Control (23.08±7.01), Introversion/Dependency (20.86±8.56) and Punishment (19.72±6.59), respectively. The participants' total difficulty score from the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire was 16.35±5.96. As a result of the analyses, it was determined that there were positive relationships between perceived negative parental attitudes and early maladaptive schemas, and negative relationships between early maladaptive schemas and cognitive flexibility. In addition, it was also found that Prescriptive/Modifying, Contemptuous/Flaw Finding mother and father attitudes; Overly Permissive/Unlimited mother attitude and Emotionally Depriving father attitude were significant predictors of cognitive flexibility. Conditional/Achievement-Oriented and Punitive mother attitudes and Emotionally Depriving father attitudes were found to be significant predictors of negative schemas. In addition, cognitive flexibility and negative schemas were found to be predictors of externalizing problems, while Overprotective/Paternal Attitudes predicted internalizing problems along with cognitive flexibility and negative schemas. Finally, according to the mediation analysis, it was concluded that early maladaptive schema domains played a mediating role in the relationship between negative parental attitudes and cognitive flexibility. The results obtained have important implications for both school-based mental health services and psycho-education programs for families.