Items are rated using a 5point likert scale whereby 1 strongly disagree and 5 strongly agree. Advances in research, theory, and clinical practice. Alexithymia was assessed using the 20item toronto alexithymia scale tas20. The 20 item toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 the tas 20 is the most widely used assessment model and is a selfreport instrument consisting of 20 items to be rated on a fivepoint likert scale taylor et al. A swedish translation of the 20item toronto alexithymia scale. It was developed in 1986 and later revised, removing some of the items. Externalizing problems appeared to increase with age and with. Using the scale provided as a guide, indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements by placing an x in he appropriate place. Some researchers have questioned the stability of the threefactor structure of the 20item toronto alexithymia scale tas20 or the reliability of one or more factors of the scale. The associations between pathological narcissism, alexithymia. There are 5 items that are negatively keyed items 4, 5, 10, 18 and 19.
Among the selfreport questionnaires, the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 is the most commonly used, but it fails to measure all the core features of alexithymia. Relationship between alexithymia and coping strategies in. It is a personality trait that varies in severity from person to person. Results narcissistic grandiosity, vulnerability, and alexithymia were positively related to disordered eating attitudes. Alexithymia has been a familiar conception of psychosomatic phenomenon. Impaired emotion recognition is linked to alexithymia in. Poor attention has been dedicated to the relation between alexithymia and specific ocd symptoms dimensions. The reliability and validity of the tas 20 was established by a series of articles. What alexithymia isnt alexithymia is sometimes loosely characterised as a lack of emotional expression or reactivity. The internet administration version of the 20item toronto.
A study of patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders article pdf available in procedia social and behavioral sciences 30. Click here to view the table of contents in pdf format. Introduction alexithymia refers to difficulty identifying, differentiating and communicating feelings, a lack of imagination and an externally oriented thinking style nemiah et al. Toronto alexithymia scale 20 measures database education.
A recently developed instrument, the bermondvorst alexithymia questionnaire bvaq, allows the measurement of the alexithymia core features, as well as an additional one. The twentyitem toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 was developed by bagby et al. Until now, populationbased standardization and cutoff values of the german tas 20 version have not been available. The tas20 has been crossvalidated in different languages, for example italian bressi et. Item selection and crossvalidation of the factor structure article pdf available in journal of psychosomatic research 381. A deeper understanding of the relationship between alexithymia and coping strategies in somatoform disorder could lead to improved therapies. Twentyitem toronto alexithymia scale tas20 springerlink. The 20item toronto alexithymia scale tas20 has been shown in previous research to measure a general dimension of alexithymia with three intercorrelated factors. Alexithymia in ptsd psychometric and fmri studies paul a.
About europe pmc funders joining europe pmc governance roadmap. A persons alexithymia score can be measured with questionnaires such as the toronto alexithymia scale tas 20, the bermondvorst alexithymia questionnaire bvaq or the observer alexithymia scale oas. Two hundred and ten alcoholdependent participants in. Dutch, german, and italian language versions of tsia keefer et al. Bagby rm1, ayearst le2, morariu ra2, watters c3, taylor gj4. Psychometric properties of the 20item toronto alexithymia. The tas20 has demonstrated good internal consistency and testretest reliability. Pdf the internet administration version of the 20item. Psychometric properties of the alexithymia questionnaire. Alexithymia, impulsiveness, and psychopathology in. The internet administration version of the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale.
This study provides these by means of a representative german sample and by investigating the factorial structure of the tas 20. The present study investigates the cognitive, affective, and physiological aspects of alexithymia. Observerrated alexithymia and its relationship with the five. The twentyitem toronto alexithymia scale tas20 was developed by bagby et al. Motivation and emotionbook2015alexithymia wikiversity.
Heart rate and skin conductance were measured during two baseline periods and during the administration of. Some researchers have questioned the stability of the threefactor structure of the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 or the reliability of one or more factors of the scale. Oct 12, 2007 the toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 is used worldwide as a valid measurement of alexithymia. The tas 20 is a selfreport scale that is comprised of 20 items. Alexithymia is not classified as a mental disorder in the dsm iv. Nonsuicidal selfinjury nssi is a multifaceted phenomenon and. The observer alexithymia scale oas has also been recommended. The tas 20 is the most widely used scale for measuring alexithymia both in empirical. Published by cambridge university press, september, 2018. Each was administered a set of three questionnaires. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the level of alexithymia, psychosocial factors, and coping strategies. Finding the psychometric properties of the original toronto alexithymia scale to be flawed, developers created the tas20 a revised measure consisting of 20 items divided into three separate factors, or domains of alexithymia. Padua university, 2department of general psychology, padua university, padova, italy introduction. Ewft were administered to 103 undergraduate students.
There are also some instruments that are specific to alexithymia, one of which is the toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 bagby et al. Psychometric properties of the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale in younger, middle, and older adolescents. Assessments included the toronto alexithymia scale, hospital anxiety and depression scale, and two subscales of the mcgill pain questionnaire. Staiy manual for the statetrait anxiety inventory form y. Effects of emotion recognition and alexithymia on motivation. At present, the selfreport toronto alexithymia scales tas are the most fre. The tas 20 has demonstrated good internal consistency and testretest reliability. The tas20 is a selfreport scale that is comprised of 20 items. Knowledge about which alexithymia domains are the most affected ones in ocd dimensions could inform clinical practice, suggesting the need for the introduction of psychotherapeutic interventions targeting alexithymia deficits. It is a dimensional personality trait that varies in intensity from person to person. Approximately thirty years ago the term alexithymia was coined but it is still open which characteristics have to be considered core symptoms of alexithymia. Alexithymia in the german general population springerlink.
Jun 15, 2016 we administered the toronto structured interview for alexithymia tsia as an interviewbased measure of alexithymia and, in addition, two selfreport questionnaires, the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 and the bermondvorst alexithymia questionnaire bvaq. Toronto alexithymia scale 20 tas 20 the tas 20 b agby et al. Tas20 toronto alexithymia scale 94 sr bvaq bermondvorst alexithymia questionnaire 01 sr oas observer alexithymia scale 00 or leas levels of emotional awareness scale 90 p mas mood awareness scale 95 sr vedi anche. A persons alexithymia score can be measured with questionnaires such as the toronto alexithymia scale tas 20, the bermondvorst alexithymia questionnaire bvaq, the online alexithymia questionnaire oaqg2 or the observer alexithymia scale oas. The twenty item toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 after a revised edition to the tas, a twentyitem version was devised. The aim of the present study was to assess the validity and reliability of the oas and the tas 20 in an alcoholdependent sample. Request pdf a swedish translation of the 20item toronto alexithymia scale.
The study of alexithymia in heroin addiction is important, because it can provide insights about the origin of the emotional processing deficit in this clinical population, as reported by. Please answer the following questions, using the scale provided. Importance of considering interoceptive abilities in alexithymia. Psychometric properties of the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale in a group of italian younger adolescents. Verbal fluency measures phonemic, semantic, emotion word fluency test. Alexithymia moderated the relationships between narcissistic vulnerability and the total score of disordered eating attitudes. A composite scale based on previous studies that merges dif and ddf into one scale had an. Toronto alexithymia scale tas 20 scores were posit. Sep 30, 2015 much of the existing adolescent alexithymia research, that has been conducted with the 20 item toronto alexithymia scale, 12, showed associations between this construct and dissociative tendencies, 14 eating behavior disorders, 15 posttraumatic stress disorder, 16 emotional intelligence, 17 and abuse.
Pdf cross validation of the factor structure of the 20. The authors provide a set of scoring criteria, prompts, and probes for each interview. The current version has twenty statements rated on a fivepoint likert scale. They were rescored twice, the italian version of the tas20, used in this. The toronto alexithymia scale is a measure of deficiency in understanding, processing, or describing emotions. In this to merged selfrepresentation andor other representationto study, we. The toronto alexithymia scale tas20 is a 20itemselfreport scale assessingemotional and social competency impairments like difficulty identifying feelings dif, difficulty describing feelings. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there were subtypes of alexithymia associating with different traits of emotional expression and regulation among a group of healthy college students.
Toronto alexithymia scale tas20 association for contextual. The contribution of alexithymia to obsessivecompulsive. Note the arousal as indicative of threat and selfand other protective needs. Wong and law 2002 reveals that leadership and emotional. Items are rated using a 5point likert scale whereby 1 strongly disagree and 5 strongly. Alexithymia, psychological distress, and pain were assessed in 30 individuals with crps in comparison to 30 gender and agematched persons with lower back pain lbp. In the initial validational study, exploratory factor analysis. The tas 20 is primarily focused on the cognitive dimensions of alexithymia and measures three subscales.
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