Relationship between personality traits and emotional schema with loneliness in Iranian people with gender dysphoria: the mediating role of mindfulness

Gender dysphoria affects people's social and psychological adjustment. One dimension of social incompatibility in people with gender dysphoria is the feeling of isolation and loneliness. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between personality traits and emotional schema with feelings of loneliness in Iranian people with gender dysphoria and the mediating role of mindfulness. Participants included 105 individuals with gender dysphoria who were asked to complete the UCLA Loneliness Scale-third version, Hexaco Personality Questionnaire, Leahy Emotional Schema Scale and Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. The results showed that emotionality, extraversion, and emotional schema have a significant relationship with loneliness (p < .05). Higher correlation has been found between loneliness and extraversion (r = -0.51). The direct effect of emotional schema (beta = 0.17; p = .044) and mindfulness (beta = -0.36; p < .001) on loneliness were significant. Furthermore, the mindfulness factor indirectly related extraversion and emotional schemas to loneliness. Thus, emotionality, extraversion and emotional schema probably reduce, directly and indirectly, the loneliness of people with gender dysphoria through the mindfulness as a mediating factor. It can be concluded that in clinical practice, therapeutic interventions based on mindfulness and schema-oriented can possibly reduce the feeling of loneliness of people with gender dysphoria. LAY SUMMARY As many people with gender dysphoria, dissatisfaction with birth-assigned sex, suffer from loneliness, this study aims to look for ways to reduce this feeling of loneliness. The result shows that increasing mindfulness and reducing negative emotional schemas can help reduce the feeling of loneliness. Additionally, having extravert tendencies helps reduce such feelings, too.