Early Maladaptive Schemas in Bipolar Disorder Patients With and Without Suicide Attempts

Patients with bipolar disorder (BD) are at an increased risk of attempted and completed suicide. To elucidate the beliefs and assumptions associated with suicidality in BD, the present study compared BD patients with and without a history of suicide attempt in terms of early maladaptive schemas (EMSs). The sample consisted of 49 remitted BD patients who completed the Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Version. Information on suicide attempts was obtained through interviews combined with medical records. Compared with BD patients without suicide attempts, the BD patients with suicide attempts scored significantly higher on 3 EMSs: social isolation, practical incompetence, and entitlement. The findings suggest that specific EMSs may be implicated in suicidal behaviors in BD. These results have implications for the assessment and treatment of suicidality in BD.