Importance of telling the unutterable: Alexithymia among sexually abused children

Abstract

Child maltreatment is known to be an etiological factor for developing alexithymia which refers to the difficulty to identify and express feelings. Yet, scarce data is available regarding the vulnerability in child victims of sexual abuse to develop alexithymia. The current study aimed to compare level of alexithymia among a sample of school-aged victims of child sexual abuse (CSA) and a comparison group of non-victimized children. Results also investigated the mediational role of alexithymia in the association between CSA and both internalized and externalized behavior problems. The sample involved 429 sexually abused and 98 non-abused children aged 6 to 12 years old and their parents. The Children's Alexithymia Measure (Way et al., 2010) and the Child Behavior Checklist (Achenbach and Rescorla, 2001) were completed by parents. Clinicians filled out an adapted version of the History of Victimization Form to assess CSA characteristics (Hébert and Cyr, 2010). Analyses revealed that victims of CSA presented significantly higher levels of alexithymia compared to their non-abused counterparts. Results also highlighted the role of alexithymia mediating the association between CSA and both internalized and externalized behavior problems. Focussing on alexithymia is a promising avenue to sustain resilience and prevent further difficulties in sexually abused children.