Direct and indirect effects of the temperament and character on alexithymia: a pathway analysis with mood and anxiety
published online 13 July 2009.
Abstract
Objective
We aimed to assess the pathway from personality to alexithymia through mood and anxiety as mediators.
Method
Three hundred thirty-four subjects (130 male), whose psychiatric health was verified by Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Axis I disorders, completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20), the Temperament and Character Inventory, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D). The schematic models for the pathway analysis from Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) to TAS-20 scores were made.
Results
Low reward dependence (RD), low self-directedness (S-D), and high cooperativeness (CO) had paths to TAS-20 total (P = .000, P = .000, and P = .042, respectively). S-D had also an indirect path via STAI-state to TAS total. On TAS-20 factor 1, low RD, low S-D, and high self-transcendence (ST) had direct effects (P = .004, P = .000, and P = .000, respectively). S-D had also an indirect path via STAI-state and (CES-D) on TAS-20 factor 1. On TAS factor 2, low novelty seeking (NS), high harm avoidance (HA), low RD, low S-D, and high cooperativeness (CO) had direct effects (P = .005, P = .011, P = .000, P = .000, and P = .004, respectively). On TAS-20 factor 3, low RD and S-D had direct effects (P = .002 and P = .000, respectively).
Conclusion
Current results suggest that although alexithymia is affected by the personality, state-dependent mood and anxiety may mediate the relationship between alexithymia and personality.
Department of Psychiatry, Gachon University of Medicine and Science, 405-760, Incheon, South Korea
Corresponding author. Seog Ju Kim, MD, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Gachon University of Medicine and Science, 1198, Guwol-dong, Namdong-gu, Incheon, 405-760, South Korea. Tel.: +82 32 460 8420; fax: +82 32 472 3396.
ABSTRACT