Alexithymia and psychological symptomatology: research conducted on a non-clinical group of Italian adolescents

ABSTRACT

Alexithymia can be considered as a defense mechanism against emotions associated with traumatic experiences that are perceived as too severe and traumatic. Due to the overwhelming nature of a traumatic event, there might be a rapid regression of affect to a pre-conceptual level of organization: so, the capacity to tolerate affect and the capacity to identify and verbalize feelings decrease. The aim of this cross-sectional study is to evaluate the trend of the correlation between psychological effects of possible childhood trauma and alexithymia in a non-clinical group of 389 Sicilian students (192 males and 197 females), aged 11–16 (M = 12.87; SD = 0.80), attending middle and secondary schools. The following instruments were used: 20-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale and Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children. Correlation analyses seem to support the hypothesis of a relation between age and the following scales: anger, overt dissociation, sexual concerns and preoccupation; and the presence of correlations between gender and anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, and fantasy. The multiple linear regression seems to indicate that a higher level of post-traumatic stress might be a predictor of the level of alexithymia. The results confirm that alexithymia is a well-established personality construct that could inhibit and interfere with normal affect regulating abilities.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescence
• alexithymia
• psychological symptomatology

Notes on contributors

Monica Pellerone is psychologist, psychotherapist, and Ph.D. at “La Sapienza” University of Rome. She is Assistant Professor at the “Kore” University of Enna, Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, where she teaches “Typical and atypical development in childhood and adolescence”, “Developmental psychology”, “Risk and protection factors during adolescence” and “Psychology of disability”. The main areas of scientific interest concern: analysis of resources and interests as predictors to the school and vocational choice in adolescents; promotion of academic success; integration and social inclusion; relationships between parenting, adult attachment and alexitymia.

Maura Ignazia Cascio has graduated in Psychology at the University of Palermo on 1997 and from 2000 she is working as a training expert in CEFPAS, where she has been involving in research on education too. In February 2013 she attended Ph.D. in Psycho-pedagogy (XIII cycle) at the “Kore” University of Enna. Research interests: adult education, E-Learning, emotion and cognition, and work stress.

Giulia Costanzo has graduated in Psychology at the “Kore” University of Enna. The main areas of scientific interest concern: sex crimes and the role of early childhood trauma, cognitive distortions, and psychopathy on the risk of recidivism.

Alessio Gori is psychologist, psychotherapist, and Ph.D. at the University of Florence. He teaches “Emotional and relational factors of learning process” and “Clinical psychology” at the Faculty of Human Sciences, Libera Università Maria Santissima Assunta, Roma. The main areas of scientific interest concern the relation between posttraumatic stress symptoms, dissociation, and alexithymia.

Ugo Pace is Associate Professor of Developmental Psychology at the “Kore” University of Enna. Since 2009 he is the dean of the Clinic Psychology Degree at the “Kore” University, where he teaches “Psychology of adolescence” and “Developmental risk and protective factors”. He is researcher of the EU-funded project “ISEC: Child Safety on Line, Enhancing Police and Industry Practice”. For what his research interests are concerned, psychological health of adolescents can be considered the main framework. Particularly, field of interests and intervention are the development of identity and autonomy and the relative level of adjustment.

Giuseppe Craparo is psychologist, psychotherapist, and Ph.D. at the University of Palermo. He is Assistant Professor at the “Kore” University of Enna, where he teaches “Clinical psychology” and “Clinical psychodiagnostic”. The main areas of scientific interest concern the relationships between early trauma, dissociation and alexithymia.