Alexithymia and Emotional Concordance (Putica 2022)

What was investigated?

Researchers at the University of Melbourne investigated whether alexithymia — the difficulty in perceiving and naming one’s own emotions — is associated with emotional response discordance. The researchers define discordance as the mismatch between a person’s subjective experience (what they report about their emotional state) and measurable physiological arousal (skin conductance, heart rate). This question was specifically examined in adults with trauma experiences, as alexithymia is particularly common in this group and may influence therapy outcomes.

Methods

74 trauma-exposed adults participated in a single laboratory session (50 female; mean age 32.72 years). 52 individuals came from a PTSD treatment clinic, 22 were psychology students at the University of Melbourne. 85% of participants scored in the probable PTSD range; 49% met the criteria for alexithymia (measured with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale). Each person went through two phases: first a ten-minute neutral nature script, then an individualized three-minute trauma script. During both phases, physiological responses (skin conductance, heart rate) and subjective mood reports (Profile of Mood States, POMS) were continuously recorded and compared.

Results

The researchers found a statistically significant interaction effect between alexithymia severity and the degree of emotional response discordance across the two experimental phases (F(1,37) = 8.93; p = 0.006). The results showed a clear pattern:

Low alexithymia group: These participants showed a significant change in their emotional concordance during the trauma script compared to the neutral script (from M = 2.57 to M = -0.32; p < 0.001). This means: Subjective experience and physiological activation aligned less during trauma recall — a typical response pattern to emotional stimuli.

High alexithymia group: In these participants, no meaningful change in concordance between the neutral and trauma phases was detectable (from M = -0.21 to M = -0.51; p = 0.50). The discordance was already present in the neutral baseline condition and remained constant — regardless of the emotional stimulus. Highly alexithymic participants also reported greater subjective distress, although their physiological activation remained equally low. This discordance effect could not be statistically explained by PTSD severity alone.

Significance

According to the authors, this study is the first empirical investigation specifically examining how alexithymia influences emotional concordance in trauma survivors. It was published in the high-ranking journal Psychological Medicine (Cambridge University Press) after peer review.

Relevant for the scientific classification of Mindfield products: Both eSense sensors were used in a controlled clinical research context at the University of Melbourne and delivered replicable physiological measurement data in a clinically significant patient group. The study is also content-wise relevant for the application field of biofeedback: Since biofeedback methods are based on the perception and regulation of physiological signals, the question of how alexithymia influences this body awareness is directly clinically relevant.