Evaluation of Emotional Abilities in Alexithymia

Abstract

[EN]The aim of this research was to assess two emotional abilities in the alexithymia dysfunction: capacity to recognize and to express emotions and empathy. Emotional abilities of 306 participants were assessed by means of TAS-20, the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) and a computerized test designed to evaluate the identification and the memory of the emotional expression. Results support partially the hypotheses of cognitive and relational deficit, since differences neither in recognition tests nor in emotional expressions memory were found. Only some dimensions of empathy were proved to be different. Results are discussed taking into account different theoretical approaches. To clarify the controversy, some lines for future work are pointed out.