The mediating roles of difficulty in Positive Emotion Regulation and difficulty in Negative Emotion Regulation in the relationship between early maladaptive schemas and digital dating violence

In the present study, it was aimed to examine the mediating role of difficulties in positive emotion regulation and negative emotion regulation in the relationship between early maladaptive schemas and cyber dating abuse. The sample of the study consists of 298 individuals between the ages of 18-30 who are in a romantic relationship or have had a romantic relationship in the last 1 year. The data of the research was collected through Demographic Information Form (DIF), Cyber Dating Abuse Questionnaire (CDAQ), Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Form (YSQ-SF3), Difficulty in Emotion Regulation Scale-Short Form (DERS-16), and Multidimensional Measure of Difficulties in the Regulation of Positive Emotions (DERS-Positive). Pearson Correlation Analysis was used to determine the relationship between early maladaptive schemas, difficulty in positive emotion regulation, negative emotion regulation and applied and exposed digital dating violence. While no significant relationship was found between both applied and exposed cyber dating abuse and impaired limits schema and, positive and significant relationships were found between for other schemas. Mediation analysis was performed to determine the mediating role of positive emotion dysregulation and negative emotion dysregulation. The results showed that the difficulties in positive emotion regulation have a partial mediating role between cyber dating abuse with all schema domains, and difficulties in negative emotion regulation have a partial mediator role between exposed cyber dating abuse and the disconnection and others-directedness schema domains. The findings obtained from the research were discussed in line with the relevant literature. The limitations of the research and suggestions for future studies are given.