Investigating the Efficacy of Group Schema Therapy on Perfectionism, Alexithymia, and Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder Symptoms

The present study aimed to examine the efficacy of group schema therapy on perfectionism, alexithymia, and symptoms of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD). This research employed a quasi-experimental design with a pre-test, post-test, and control group. The study population included individuals diagnosed with OCPD who sought treatment at the psychology polyclinic of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. Using voluntary sampling, 30 participants meeting the DSM-5 criteria for OCPD were selected based on the Structured Clinical Interview for Personality Disorders (SCID-5-PD) and the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III). These participants were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Data were collected using the MCMI-III, Hill Perfectionism Questionnaire, and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Following the pre-test, the experimental group received 10 sessions of group schema therapy, while the control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA).Results revealed that group schema therapy significantly improved perfectionism and OCPD symptoms (p < 0.05), but it did not yield significant changes in alexithymia (p > 0.05).Keywords: Schema Therapy, Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder, Perfectionism, Alexithymia