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Psychiatria Danubina 2021The COVID-19 pandemic process caused many physiological and psychological effects on individuals. This study aims to examine the ruminative thinking and alexithymia...
OBJECTIVE
The COVID-19 pandemic process caused many physiological and psychological effects on individuals. This study aims to examine the ruminative thinking and alexithymia levels of people in the COVID-19 pandemic process.
METHODS
The descriptive, cross-sectional, and the correlational designed study was conducted with 852 people in ?stanbul\Turkey during the COVID-19 pandemic process between March and May 2020. The data of the research was collected with the Sociodemographic Form Toronto Alexithymia Scale and Ruminative Thought Style Questionnaire.
RESULTS
It was found that the average of ruminative thought score of the people was 92.49±19.89 and the alexithymia score average was 71.76±13.70. A positive and significant relationship was found between the Ruminative Thought Style Questionnaire and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale and subscale scores (p<0.05). According to the results, ruminative thinking levels were affected by 12% alexithymia level and 9% time spent on conversation. A statistically significant relationship was found between rumination, alexithymia, and its sub-dimensions and the number of times people spend for conversation during the day and the number of people they live with (p<0.05). It was determined that those living with family/friends were lower than those who were alone, and those with good communication in relationships had lower rumination and alexithymia (p<0.05).
CONCLUSION
Care should be taken against alexithymia and rumination during the COVID-19 pandemic process, and attention should be given to interpersonal relationships, conversation, and communication in the quarantine process.
Topics: Affective Symptoms; COVID-19; Cross-Sectional Studies; Humans; Pandemics; SARS-CoV-2; Turkey
PubMed: 34185756
DOI: 10.24869/psyd.2021.240 -
Israel Journal of Psychiatry 2018Emotional difficulties characterize eating disorders (ED). We examined the construct of alexithymia (disability to recognize and understand emotions) and neurocognitive...
BACKGROUND
Emotional difficulties characterize eating disorders (ED). We examined the construct of alexithymia (disability to recognize and understand emotions) and neurocognitive factors of social cognition in patients diagnosed with B/P-EDs and their mothers.
METHOD
34 mother-daughter dyads, in which the daughter has B/P-ED and 31 control dyads conducted subjective self-evaluation of alexithymia and underwent objective neuro-cognitive evaluation of their ability to recognize and understand emotions. Results were compared.
RESULTS
First, significant differences were found between the daughters' groups on their subjective but not objective evaluation of alexithymia. Second, within group motherdaughter correlation was positive for controls, but not for the ED group.
CONCLUSIONS
People with B/P-ED show subjective high levels of alexithymia but not an objective deficit in emotional understanding. However, there is an interesting dis-correlation between them and their mothers, which calls for further research.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Affective Symptoms; Feeding and Eating Disorders; Female; Humans; Middle Aged; Mothers; Social Perception; Young Adult
PubMed: 29916406
DOI: No ID Found -
Neuropsychologia Mar 2018The clinical relevance of alexithymia, a condition associated with difficulties identifying and describing one's own emotion, is becoming ever more apparent. Increased...
The clinical relevance of alexithymia, a condition associated with difficulties identifying and describing one's own emotion, is becoming ever more apparent. Increased rates of alexithymia are observed in multiple psychiatric conditions, and also in neurological conditions resulting from both organic and traumatic brain injury. The presence of alexithymia in these conditions predicts poorer regulation of one's emotions, decreased treatment response, and increased burden on carers. While clinically important, the aetiology of alexithymia is still a matter of debate, with several authors arguing for multiple 'routes' to impaired understanding of one's own emotions, which may or may not result in distinct subtypes of alexithymia. While previous studies support the role of impaired interoception (perceiving bodily states) in the development of alexithymia, the current study assessed whether acquired language impairment following traumatic brain injury, and damage to language regions, may also be associated with an increased risk of alexithymia. Within a sample of 129 participants with penetrating brain injury and 33 healthy controls, neuropsychological testing revealed that deficits in a non-emotional language task, object naming, were associated with alexithymia, specifically with difficulty identifying one's own emotions. Both region-of-interest and whole-brain lesion analyses revealed that damage to language regions in the inferior frontal gyrus was associated with the presence of both this language impairment and alexithymia. These results are consistent with a framework for acquired alexithymia that incorporates both interoceptive and language processes, and support the idea that brain injury may result in alexithymia via impairment in any one of a number of more basic processes.
Topics: Affective Symptoms; Brain Injuries, Traumatic; Emotions; Head Injuries, Penetrating; Humans; Language; Longitudinal Studies; Middle Aged; Prefrontal Cortex; Self Concept; Veterans; Vietnam Conflict
PubMed: 29360519
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.12.037 -
International Journal of Environmental... Apr 2022The literature has long highlighted the benefits of sport, but too much sport could indicate a dependence without a substance, namely exercise dependence. The literature...
The literature has long highlighted the benefits of sport, but too much sport could indicate a dependence without a substance, namely exercise dependence. The literature has only recently investigated this issue and therefore several questions are open, particularly with regard to psychopathological significance and gender differences. The aim of this paper is to investigate whether young subjects (M = 20 years) with a risk of exercise dependency and non-dependent symptomatic display other behavioural and psychological suffering and discomforts, or whether such an investment in physical activity is compatible with a framework of relative well-being; and if there are differences related to gender. A total of 396 subjects were involved in this study. Exercise Dependence Scale, Toronto Alexithymia Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale and an ad hoc questionnaire with information relating to the consumption of alcohol, soft and hard drugs, quality of sleep and nutrition, affective and friendship relationships, hobbies, presence of psychological or physical disorders, motivations for sporting activity, and any traumatic experiences were used. With regard to the Exercise Dependence Scale (EDS), the prevalence of subjects at risk of exercise dependence was 1.5% and that of non-dependents symptomatic was 31.3%. Considering only men, the percentage of subjects at risk of exercise dependence rose to 3% and that of non-dependents symptomatic to 47.9%. Our data support the hypothesis that the risk of exercise dependence and the symptomatic condition without dependence can occur in situations of relative well-being (happiness, satisfaction, relationships) without significant associations with other problematic behaviours. Modest consumption of soft drugs is reported in non-dependent symptomatic subjects. The hypothesis of increased levels of alexithymia is confirmed but limited to the male gender. Gender differences are confirmed in the frequency and motivation to practice sport and in the risk of dependence. It is important that the assessment of addiction risk is integrated with the assessment of alexithymia and personal and social resources over time.
Topics: Affective Symptoms; Exercise; Humans; Male; Sex Factors; Sports; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 35564683
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19095288 -
BMC Psychology Aug 2023Emotional divorce occurs when a couple continues to live together due to necessity and coercion but they do not have a positive or constructive relationship, which...
BACKGROUND
Emotional divorce occurs when a couple continues to live together due to necessity and coercion but they do not have a positive or constructive relationship, which negatively affects the stability of married life. Due to the low social acceptance of a formal divorce in the Saudi society, emotional divorce is common in several families. The rigidity of feelings and emotions within the family and the inability to express them may indicate the presence of alexithymia, which could result in the collapse of the family system and place the people involved at risk of mental health problems such as depression. Therefore, it is important to determine the prevalence of emotional divorce among married women in Saudi Arabia and to examine the relationship between emotional divorce and alexithymia.
METHODS
Data were collected from 305 married women in Saudi Arabia (M = 33.24 years; SD = 4.87 years), using the Emotional Divorce Scale and the Alexithymia Scale.
RESULTS
Results revealed that 78.36% of the participants experienced moderate to severe levels of emotional divorce. Working women, those who had been married for more than ten years, and those with five or more children exhibited a higher incidence of emotional divorce as compared to their counterparts. A linear regression analysis indicated that alexithymia was significantly associated with emotional divorce in this sample.
CONCLUSION
These results suggest the need for examining the negative consequences of emotional divorce on the family and society. Additionally, it is important to educate young individuals of marriageable age about the nature of married life, and ways to deal with problems that occur. Finally, couples should be encouraged to express their positive and negative emotions with their spouse to build the marital relationship, and achieve compatibility and marital satisfaction.
Topics: Child; Humans; Female; Adult; Child, Preschool; Divorce; Marriage; Saudi Arabia; Affective Symptoms; Emotions
PubMed: 37533120
DOI: 10.1186/s40359-023-01236-w -
PloS One 2022Emotion-related hyperarousal is an important core pathology of poor sleep. Studies investigating the interplay of alexithymia and affective experiences in determining...
OBJECTIVES
Emotion-related hyperarousal is an important core pathology of poor sleep. Studies investigating the interplay of alexithymia and affective experiences in determining sleep quality have yielded mixed results. To disentangle the inconsistency, this study examined the concurrent predictive power of alexithymia, and negative and positive affect, while incorporating interoceptive sensibility (IS) as a possible moderator.
METHODS
A sample of 224 (70.10% were female) participants completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA), and Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (for controlling response bias) using paper and pencil. A two-stage cluster analysis of the MAIA was used to capture IS characteristics. Stepwise regression was conducted separately for each IS cluster.
RESULTS
A three-group structure for IS characteristics was found. Higher alexithymia was predictive of poor sleep quality in the low IS group, while higher negative affect predicted poor sleep quality in the moderate and high IS groups. Additionally, alexithymia and positive affect were significantly different in the three IS groups, while negative affect and sleep quality were not.
CONCLUSIONS
Emotion and cognitive arousal may impact sleep quality differently in individuals with different levels of internal focusing ability, depending on physiological versus emotional self-conceptualization. The implications on pathological research, clinical intervention, study limitations and future directions are discussed.
Topics: Affective Symptoms; Arousal; Emotions; Female; Humans; Male; Sleep Quality
PubMed: 36191028
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275359 -
The American Journal on Addictions Nov 2020Exposure to early-life trauma may lead to maladaptive characteristics such as alexithymia, and thus to poorer emotional regulation. This relationship may also be...
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Exposure to early-life trauma may lead to maladaptive characteristics such as alexithymia, and thus to poorer emotional regulation. This relationship may also be influenced by exposure to substances prenatally. We hypothesized that increased alexithymia would be seen in those with prenatal cocaine exposure (PCE). Additionally, we hypothesized that early-life trauma would be associated with alexithymia, and that alexithymia would be associated with poor emotional reappraisal and emotional suppression.
METHODS
A moderated mediation model was developed to examine whether the hypothesized indirect relationship between trauma and emotional reappraisal through alexithymia was different in young adults with and without PCE (Total N = 57). Thirty-seven young adults with PCE and 20 with no such exposure, all of whom were members of a longitudinal cohort, were recruited for the study, and data concerning childhood trauma, alexithymia, and emotional regulation were collected. Intercorrelations were performed between the scores on each measure and moderated mediation models were constructed separately with emotional neglect or emotional abuse as the independent variable and emotional reappraisal or emotional suppression as the dependent variable.
RESULTS
PCE status was associated with alexithymia, and alexithymia mediated the relationship between emotional neglect and emotional reappraisal in individuals with PCE but not those without.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS
The data suggest that alexithymia is a mechanism underlying poor use of emotional reappraisal in PCE individuals.
SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE
Individuals with early-life trauma and substance exposure may represent a vulnerable population, and alexithymia may play a key role in the development of emotional regulation skills in this population. (Am J Addict 2020;29:492-499).
Topics: Adult; Affective Symptoms; Child; Child Abuse; Cocaine; Dopamine Uptake Inhibitors; Emotional Regulation; Female; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Models, Psychological; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Psychological Trauma; Risk Factors; Surveys and Questionnaires; Vulnerable Populations; Young Adult
PubMed: 32436341
DOI: 10.1111/ajad.13056 -
Journal of Autism and Developmental... Feb 2022Recent evidence suggests that, contrary to traditional views, empathy difficulties may not be a core feature of autism; but are rather due to co-occurring alexithymia....
Recent evidence suggests that, contrary to traditional views, empathy difficulties may not be a core feature of autism; but are rather due to co-occurring alexithymia. Empathy, alexithymia and autistic traits have yet to be examined concurrently in children. Therefore, we examined the co-occurrence of empathy difficulties and alexithymia in 59 typically developing and 5 autistic children. Multiple measures (self-report, parent-report and a behavioural task) were used to evaluate empathy and to assess differences in self- and parent-reports using multiple regressions. Alexithymia was found to predict empathy significantly better than autistic traits, providing support for the alexithymia hypothesis. From a therapeutic perspective, results suggest autistic children who screen positive for elevated alexithymic traits may benefit from additional support targeting emotion identification.
Topics: Affective Symptoms; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Autistic Disorder; Child; Emotions; Empathy; Humans
PubMed: 33788077
DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-04986-x -
Drug and Alcohol Dependence Dec 2020Although prior work indicates a link between childhood trauma, alexithymia, and mental states recognition, empirical support is limited. Moreover, findings based on... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
BACKGROUND
Although prior work indicates a link between childhood trauma, alexithymia, and mental states recognition, empirical support is limited. Moreover, findings based on adult samples are mixed. Previous studies demonstrate that childhood trauma might either enhance, preserve, or reduce mental states recognition in selected at-risk populations. The current study investigates whether alcohol use disorder (AUD) status moderates the association between childhood trauma, alexithymia, and mental states recognition in a treatment-seeking AUD sample and non-AUD healthy adults.
METHODS
Data comes from 255 individuals participating in an ongoing project that compares emotional and behavioral functioning of patients treated in an inpatient setting for AUD and a comparison sample of 172 healthy controls (HCs). Mental states recognition was measured using a computerized version of the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Task (RMET). The presence of childhood trauma was assessed with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Alexithymia was measured with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Demographic information, as well as alcohol drinking and psychopathological symptoms were assessed. A moderated mediation model was estimated whereby alexithymia was included as a mediator in the association between childhood trauma and RMET performance, with AUD diagnosis status moderating the link between alexithymia and RMET performance.
RESULTS
Findings provide support for moderated mediation. Childhood emotional trauma impacted negative mental states recognition performance via difficulty describing feelings, but only among HCs (p < 0.01).
CONCLUSIONS
Findings highlight the impact that AUD status has on the association between early life emotional trauma and difficulty describing feelings on individual differences in mental states recognition.
Topics: Adult; Affective Symptoms; Alcoholism; Child; Child Abuse; Emotions; Female; Healthy Volunteers; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Recognition, Psychology; Retrospective Studies; Self Report; Surveys and Questionnaires; Theory of Mind
PubMed: 32979738
DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108301 -
International Journal of Environmental... Mar 2022Psoriasis is a chronic, relapsing, inflammatory disease with a high risk of developing mental health difficulties.
BACKGROUND
Psoriasis is a chronic, relapsing, inflammatory disease with a high risk of developing mental health difficulties.
OBJECTIVE
The purposes of the study were to evaluate in moderate-to-severe psoriasis (a) the prevalence of depression and psychopathology, (b) the relationship between depression, psychopathology symptoms, and alexithymia, including its three dimensions, difficulty in identifying feelings (DIF), difficulty in describing feelings (DDF), and externally oriented thinking (EOT), and (c) to establish a novel index for the development of depression according to patients' psychopathological profile.
METHODS
In 104 patients, alexithymia was evaluated with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), depression with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and psychopathology with the Brief Symptom Inventory SCL-90 (SCL90). A psychopathology index that combines information from the BDI and SCL90 scales was constructed and the performance of the index with alexithymia was examined.
RESULTS
Female patients and active smokers score higher on BDI and SCL90 scales. Overweight patients tend to score arithmetically higher. The psychopathology index developed correlates significantly with age, DIF, DDF, and TAS-20. DIF, DDF, and TAS-20 are significant predictors of the psychopathology index. Patients with alexithymia/possible alexithymia are six times as likely to score higher in one of the psychopathology scales.
CONCLUSIONS
Alexithymia is a significant factor in the development of psychopathology in psoriasis patients. The use of the proposed novel psychopathology index could be essential in order to identify patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis who are more likely to experience depression and psychopathology. This could have an impact on the decision-making of psoriasis treatment and monitoring of the patient.
Topics: Affective Symptoms; Female; Humans; Mental Disorders; Prognosis; Psoriasis; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
PubMed: 35409713
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19074029