Alexithymia and interpersonal problems

✍ Scribed by Stijn Vanheule; Mattias Desmet; Reitske Meganck; Stefan Bogaerts

• Book ID: 102310467
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2006
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 102 KB
• Volume: 63
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0021-9762
• DOI: 10.1002/jclp.20324

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

This study examines whether alexithymia relates to specific interpersonal problems, based on data collected in a sample of mental health outpatients (N = 404) and a student sample (N = 157). Linear regression analysis, in which the effects of group, gender, and age were controlled, indicated that two interpersonal problems were significantly and reliably related to alexithymia: cold/distant and nonassertive social functioning. The theoretical relevance of the results for attachment and psychoanalytic theory is indicated, as well as implications of the findings for clinical practice. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 63: 109–117, 2007.