Aim of the studyThe present study aimed to investigate the role of schema modes in the cluster B personality disorders.Subject or material and methodsParticipants comprised of 220 individuals – 38 men and 137 women – selected from psychiatric and psychological clinics in Tabriz, Iran. Among the participants, 153 individuals were diagnosed with cluster B personality (44 with the borderline disorder, 16 with antisocial disorder, 56 with histrionic disorder and 37 with narcissistic personality disorder). Furthermore, 67 participants appeared to be without any personality disorders (PDs). The diagnosis of personality disorders was done by using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II disorders (SCID-II). All participants (with or without PDs) were asked to answer the Millon Clinical Multi-axial Inventory-3 (MCMI-III) and the Schema Modes Inventory (SMI).ResultsVulnerable, angry and impulsive child modes are predictors of the borderline personality disorder, and the schema modes of the angry child, self-soother and healthy adult are predictors of antisocial personality disorder. Also, the impulsive and happy child, the attack-bully and healthy adult schema modes predict histrionic personality disorder. Finally, the angry, happy child, self-soother and self-aggrandizer schema modes could predict narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).DiscussionSpecial schema modes have roles in explaining cluster B personality disorders, and yet these disorders may overlap each other with regard to some dimensions, especially in terms of cognitions and beliefs among cluster B personality disorders. It can be interpreted as the lack of specificity in categorical classification systems like DSM.Conclusionsthe conclusion is made about the current and alternative models of personality disorders