The lack of a «Normative Male Alexithymia» in parents of daughters with anorexia nervosa: A pilot study by using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes test (RME) and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale TAS-20
Alessandro Chinello, Monica Redaelli, Francesca Parma, Gloria Faraci, Sara Bertelli, Luigi Enrico Zappa
Limited studies investigated alexithymia and emotion recognition on parents of anorexic (AN) daughters, showing conflicting results. Considering the important role of these constricts in AN family psychotherapy, this pilot study aims to test the validity of the «Normative Male Alexithymia» hypothesis in AN parents. Forty-three parents of AN daughters (20 fathers and 23 mothers) were tested by using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes test (RME). The Levant’s hypothesis (2006) regarding a sex-dependent discrepancy in emotion competence was not confirmed by our findings, showing homogenous TAS-20 and RME scores in both fathers and mothers. However, our results constitute a first support to Colesso’s hypothesis (2017) regarding a normalizing effect of AN on parents’ emotional processing. Further studies are necessary with larger samples, healthy controls and by using comparable questionnaires.
Keywords
Alexithymia, Anorexia, Parents, Emotions.