Alexithymia Prevalence, Characterization, and Associations With Emotional Functioning and Life Satisfaction: A Traumatic Brain Injury Model System Study

Abstract

Objectives: Alexithymia an emotional processing deficit that interferes with a person’s ability to recognize, express, and differentiate emotional states. Study objectives were to (1) determine rates of elevated alexithymia among people with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) 1-year post-injury, (2) identify demographic and injury-related variables associated with high versus low-average levels of alexithymia, and (3) examine associations among alexithymia with other aspects of emotional functioning and life satisfaction. Setting: Data were collected during follow-up interviews across four TBI Model System (TBIMS) centers. Participants: The sample consisted of 196 participants with moderate-to-severe TBI enrolled in the TBIMS. They were predominately male (77%), White (69%), and had no history of pre-injury mental health treatment (66.3%). Design: Cross-sectional survey data were obtained at study enrollment and 1-year post-injury. Main Measures: Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) as well as measures of anger, aggression, hostility, emotional dysregulation, post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, resilience and life satisfaction. Sociodemographic information, behavioral health history and injury-related variables were also included. Results: High levels of alexithymia (TAS-20 score > 1.5 standard deviation above the normative mean) were observed for 14.3%. Compared to individuals with low/average levels of alexithymia, the high alexithymia group tended to have lower levels of education. At 1-year follow-up, high TAS-20 scores were strongly associated with emotional dysregulation and post-traumatic stress; moderately associated with anger, hostility, depression, anxiety, lower resilience and lower satisfaction with life; and weakly associated with aggression. Conclusion: These findings provide further evidence that alexithymia is associated with poor emotional functioning and life satisfaction after TBI. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine if alexithymia is a risk factor that precipitates and predicts worse emotional outcomes in the TBI population. This line of work is important for informing treatment targets that could prevent or reduce of psychological distress after TBI.