Young Schema Mode Inventory
Within the schema therapy framework, this inventory assesses 14 schema modes — the emotional states that become active from moment to moment.
In one minute
How it works in 3 steps
- You respond: You mark the items that reflect your different emotional states.
- A mode map is produced: The dominant modes and the healthy adult side separate out.
- It is interpreted: The result is read together with the triggers that set each mode off.
Who it informs
When professional support helps
What does the SMI measure?
Modes describe our emotional state in a given moment. The inventory shows how often parts such as the hurt child, the angry child, the punishing inner voice, avoidant coping and the healthy adult come into play. Rather than a single total, it draws a picture of which patterns take the lead when you are triggered.
A strengthening of the healthy adult side and a softening of the maladaptive modes is a meaningful direction of change that is followed over the course of schema therapy work. Seeing your mode map is the first step in working with these patterns.
How is it scored?
Items are scored on a rating scale and distributed across the mode areas. Interpretation rests on the mode profile rather than on a single total; the combination of low healthy-adult scores with elevated maladaptive modes is the key indicator.
- Items
- 124
- Score range
- 0–744
- Administration
- Self / observer report
What do the score bands mean?
The ranges below are a general frame. No band makes a diagnosis on its own; a result only becomes meaningful when a clinical psychologist interprets it alongside your life story.
| Score | General interpretation |
|---|---|
| 0–248 | Healthy modes predominate |
| 249–496 | Mixed mode activation |
| 497–744 | Maladaptive modes predominate |
Limitation: It relies on self-report; when detached, protective coping is dominant, some scores may come out lower than they truly are because the person cannot reach the emotional experience. It is not a diagnostic tool, and a scale never makes a diagnosis on its own.
Psychometrics and source
The internal consistency of the mode subscales was found to be good in the original validity study by Young and colleagues (2007), and the inventory distinguishes clinical from non-clinical groups.
Original source: Young, J.E. et al. (2007). Schema Mode Inventory.
How is this scale used at Mete Psikoloji?
At Mete Psikoloji, this inventory is used in schema therapy work to understand the dominant mode cycles and to follow change over the course of the process. Your scores are always recorded and followed in your personal portal; your clinical psychologist interprets them together with you. Clients seen online complete and view the inventory in the portal, and clients seen in person are followed in the same portal.
Related reading
Did your result give you pause?
A scale is only a starting point. By planning an assessment session with our clinical psychologists, you can consider your result alongside the context of your life.