title: Changes in scores on alexithymia over a period of psychiatric treatment.
abstract: We examined changes in alexithymia over a period of psychiatric treatment. Scores on a measure of alexithymia construct (affect awareness but not externally oriented thinking) decreased significantly after psychiatric treatment, suggesting that alexithymia or affect awareness for patients with psychiatric disorders or psychosocial problems is a state reaction rather than a personality trait. As for an association of reactions to stress with alexithymia, a group on high extrapunitiveness demonstrated significant decrease in scores on affect awareness compared to a group on low extrapunitiveness both before and after psychiatric treatment.
authors.affiliation: Tokyo Institute of Psychiatry, Japan. fukunisi@prit.go.jp
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fukunishi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takubo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results