Family environment and alexithymia in clients and non-clients

Abstract

Alexithymia involves problems differentiating generalized arousal into affective states such as fear, sadness, or anger; difficulties expressing feelings; and a tendency to rely on external cues rather than internal experience for making decisions. We examined self-reported alexithymia (Toronto Alexithymia Scale), retrospective ratings of family dysfunction (Family Structure Scale), and healthy family environment (Family Environment Scale) in clients (n = 33) and nonclients (n = 32). Clients recalled significantly more family dysfunction and reported a trend toward higher alexithymia than nonclients. For the combined samples, alexithymia was positively associated with retrospective reports of family dysfunction, including parent-child role reversal, fear of separation, and parental enmeshment. More than simply the absence of dysfunction, memories of affirmatively healthy family environments, including cohesion, emotional expression, and encouragement of independence were negatively correlated with alexithymia.