The alexithymia construct first appeared in academic literature over 30 years ago, but has recently undergone a revival in terms of research and clinical interest. The aim of this thesis was to explore the concept of alexithymia, in the hope of elucidating the impact that it can have on mental health difficulties, and offering suggestions for intervention. The first chapter is a literature review focussing on the stability of alexithymia in relation to different medical and psychiatric disorders, and evaluating the evidence for it being either a transient state or permanent trait. Emphasis is placed on implications for treatment, as well as directions for future research. The second chapter reports findings from a cross-sectional study examining the relationship between alexithymia and attachment in individuals with diagnosed anorexia nervosa, compared to a group of non-clinical controls. The focus is on the high prevalence of alexithymia and insecure attachment experiences in the clinical group, and on the associations between alexithymia and insecure attachments, alexithymia and eating disorder pathology, and insecure attachment and eating disorder pathology. The third chapter is a reflective paper examining the impact of the research process on the researcher in terms of personal and professional development. Consideration is paid to methodological and conceptual issues related to the research process, and the impact that conducting empirical work can have on clinical practice.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:560097 |
| Date | January 2010 |
| Creators | Peters, Simone |
| Publisher | University of Warwick |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/49342/ |
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