{"id":{"repo_id":"uwo","oai_identifier":"oai:uwo.scholaris.ca:20.500.14721/27104"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uwo/oai:uwo.scholaris.ca:20.500.14721/27104","repository":{"repo_id":"uwo","name":"Western University","base_url":"https://uwo.scholaris.ca/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"It's Not Me It's You: Examining the Link Between Partner-Schema Organization, Relationship Functioning, and Depressive Symptoms","abstract":"Depression is associated with a host of interpersonal difficulties, particularly within intimate relationships. While a significant body of literature has supported the presence of a highly consolidated negative self representation or “self-schema”, no studies have examined whether depression is also associated with a highly organized negative “partner-schema”, and whether this represents a risk factor for relationship distress. Given the high degree of similarity between cognitive representations of self and close others, it was predicted that depression would be associated with a partner-schema structure mirroring that of the self-schema: an organized cognitive structure characterized by tightly interconnected negative information, and loosely dispersed positive information. In a sample of 291 undergraduate students, results supported this hypothesis, and revealed that partner-schema structure was associated with relationship quality and attributions about a partner’s behaviours. These findings have important implications for understanding the link between cognitive risk factors, relational dysfunction, and depressive symptoms.","abstract_html":"Depression is associated with a host of interpersonal difficulties, particularly within intimate relationships. While a significant body of literature has supported the presence of a highly consolidated negative self representation or “self-schema”, no studies have examined whether depression is also associated with a highly organized negative “partner-schema”, and whether this represents a risk factor for relationship distress. Given the high degree of similarity between cognitive representations of self and close others, it was predicted that depression would be associated with a partner-schema structure mirroring that of the self-schema: an organized cognitive structure characterized by tightly interconnected negative information, and loosely dispersed positive information. In a sample of 291 undergraduate students, results supported this hypothesis, and revealed that partner-schema structure was associated with relationship quality and attributions about a partner’s behaviours. These findings have important implications for understanding the link between cognitive risk factors, relational dysfunction, and depressive symptoms.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Wilde, Jesse Lee"],"institution":"The University of Western Ontario","degree_name":"M Sc","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["David J. A. Dozois"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-06-26","date_published":"2017-06-26","updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:56:18Z","subjects":["depression","interpersonal difficulties","cognitive schemas","relationship dysfunction","attributions"],"languages":["en_ca"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14721/27104","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["David J. A. 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In citing or referring to this thesis, use the DOI or handle from this page instead. Sample citation: Author name, \"Thesis title.\" (Year). Western University Open Repository. https://doi.org/10.71858/123456."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Depression is associated with a host of interpersonal difficulties, particularly within intimate relationships. While a significant body of literature has supported the presence of a highly consolidated negative self representation or “self-schema”, no studies have examined whether depression is also associated with a highly organized negative “partner-schema”, and whether this represents a risk factor for relationship distress. Given the high degree of similarity between cognitive representations of self and close others, it was predicted that depression would be associated with a partner-schema structure mirroring that of the self-schema: an organized cognitive structure characterized by tightly interconnected negative information, and loosely dispersed positive information. In a sample of 291 undergraduate students, results supported this hypothesis, and revealed that partner-schema structure was associated with relationship quality and attributions about a partner’s behaviours. These findings have important implications for understanding the link between cognitive risk factors, relational dysfunction, and depressive symptoms."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["It's Not Me It's You: Examining the Link Between Partner-Schema Organization, Relationship Functioning, and Depressive Symptoms"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["David J. A. Dozois"],"dc:creator":["Wilde, Jesse Lee"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2025-07-10T15:17:51Z"],"dc:date.available":["2025-07-10T15:17:51Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2017-06-26"],"dc:description":["The thesis cover page in the PDF document includes references to Western University’s previous institutional repository platform, known as Scholarship@Western, and links to that platform (beginning with ir.lib.uwo.ca). In citing or referring to this thesis, use the DOI or handle from this page instead. Sample citation: Author name, \"Thesis title.\" (Year). Western University Open Repository. https://doi.org/10.71858/123456."],"dc:description.abstract":["Depression is associated with a host of interpersonal difficulties, particularly within intimate relationships. While a significant body of literature has supported the presence of a highly consolidated negative self representation or “self-schema”, no studies have examined whether depression is also associated with a highly organized negative “partner-schema”, and whether this represents a risk factor for relationship distress. Given the high degree of similarity between cognitive representations of self and close others, it was predicted that depression would be associated with a partner-schema structure mirroring that of the self-schema: an organized cognitive structure characterized by tightly interconnected negative information, and loosely dispersed positive information. In a sample of 291 undergraduate students, results supported this hypothesis, and revealed that partner-schema structure was associated with relationship quality and attributions about a partner’s behaviours. These findings have important implications for understanding the link between cognitive risk factors, relational dysfunction, and depressive symptoms."],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14721/27104"],"dc:language.iso":["en_ca"],"dc:publisher":["The University of Western Ontario"],"dc:subject":["depression","interpersonal difficulties","cognitive schemas","relationship dysfunction","attributions"],"dc:title":["It's Not Me It's You: Examining the Link Between Partner-Schema Organization, Relationship Functioning, and Depressive Symptoms"],"dc:type":["thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_name":["M Sc"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:56:18Z"}