Open AccessFeatures of the Personal Anxiety and Mental Rigidity Ratio in the Structure of Alexithymia
Author(s) -
Anna I. Zdanovich,
Д. В. Плотников,
Irina A. Belskikh,
E. Levchenko
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
vestnik uralʹskoj medicinskoj akademičeskoj nauki
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2500-0918
pISSN - 2073-9125
DOI - 10.22138/2500-0918-2021-18-2-117-131
Subject(s) - alexithymia , psychology , anxiety , toronto alexithymia scale , clinical psychology , rigidity (electromagnetism) , psychiatry , structural engineering , engineering
The purpose of the current study was to determine the components of personal anxiety and mental rigidity, the significance of their severity and combination in the structure of alexithymia. Materials and methods. The study was conducted on 377 apparently healthy men and women aged 20-25 years. The assessment of the level of alexithymia in points was carried out using the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale in the Russian version, then all participants were passed the Differential Assessment of Personal Anxiety Test and the Differentiated Mental Rigidity Assessment Test to determine the corresponding characteristics. The study participants were divided by gender, and each group into subgroups depending on the level of alexithymia severity. Results. Analysis of the average values revealed an increase in both the general levels of personal anxiety and mental rigidity with an increase in alexithymic potential, and individual components of these signs. A factor analysis was performed to identify the ratios of personal anxiety and mental rigidity components depending on alexithymia severity. It was revealed a three-factor structure with the greatest loads on the affective and cognitive components. With correlation analysis, the structures of the subscales of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale were investigated, and it was revealed that they are, to a high degree of probability, formed by various combinations of personal anxiety and mental rigidity components. Conclusion. The investigation confirmed the complex heterogeneous and multidimensional structure of the alexithymic potential and the essential role of various ratios of personal anxiety and mental rigidity components in its profile.