The Relationship between Alexithymia and Abnormal Illness Behavior

Abstract

The relationship between abnormal illness behavior, measured by the illness Behavior Questionnaire and alexithymia, measured by the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, was studied in four cohorts of subjects. The two measures overlap in that the more alexithymic subjects endorsed more disease conviction, hypochondriacal concern, affective inhibition, affective disturbance, and irritability. Denial was not related to alexithymia, which supports the construct validity of alexithymia. Regression models developed for the four cohorts that consisted of psychiatric outpatients, psychiatric inpatients, medically ill patients and controls differed to suggest that alexithymia state phenomena interact with trait characteristics.