Alexithymia in diabetes patients: its relationship with perceived social support and glycaemic control

Alexithymia and negative emotions among nursing students: a moderated mediation model

Nursing students, who comprise a high percentage of China's college students, experience many psychological problems; however, few studies explored the mechanisms underlying these problems. This cross-sectional study explored the relationships and mechanisms of depression, anxiety, stress, and narrative disorders in senior nursing students. Questionnaires were administered to 380 senior nursing students in Hubei Province using the Sociodemographic Questionnaire, Toronto Alexithymia-20 Scale, Perceived Social Support Scale, 10-Item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale. After controlling for sociodemographic variables, Hayes' PROCESS macros were used to test how psychological resilience moderates the relationships among narrative disorders, negative affect, and perceived social support. Bootstrap confidence intervals tested for indirect effects. Correlation analyses revealed that alexithymia was correlated significantly positively with depression-anxiety-stress (r = 0.57, 0.56, and 0.58, resp.) and significantly negatively with perceived social support (r = 0-0.46). Psychological resilience was correlated significantly negatively with alexithymia (r=-0.39) and depression-anxiety-stress (r=-0.31, -0.30, and-0.32, resp.) but significantly positively with perceived social support(r = 0.50). Perceived social support was correlated significantly negatively with depression-anxiety-stress (r=-0.33, -0.34, and - 0.42 resp.). Stress was correlated significantly positively with anxiety and depression (r = 0.81 and 0.77, resp.). Psychological resilience was a partial mediator between depression and dysphoria (β=-0.08, p < 0.05). Dysphoria directly predicted anxiety (β = 0.31) and stress (β = 0.37); moreover,alexithymia predicted depression not only directly but also through the mediating effect of psychological resilience. Therefore, educators and clinical administrators must promote and recognise negative emotions among nursing students to help ensure the nursing workforce's stability.

Effect of fear of hypoglycaemia on sleep quality of patients with type 2 mellitus diabetes: The mediating role of alexithymia

Background

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) commonly experience poor sleep quality. This study aimed to investigate whether alexithymia mediates the association between fear of hypoglycaemia (FoH) and sleep quality in patients with T2DM.

Methods

From September 2021 to November 2021, a cross-sectional survey was conducted on 407 patients with T2DM in China. Data collection was made possible through the administration of the Chinese Version of the Worry Scale, Toronto Alexithymia Scale and Chinese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (CPSQI). Multiple linear regression analyses were also performed.

Results

A total of 65.6% of the participants were male, and 75.7% were aged 18-40 years. FoH showed a moderate and positive correlation with CPSQI scores (r = 0.308, p < 0.001). Alexithymia was weakly and positively correlated with CPSQI scores (r = 0.185, p < 0.001). Meanwhile, FoH exhibited a moderate and positive correlation with alexithymia (r = 0.422, p < 0.001), and difficulty in identifying (r = 0.414, p < 0.001) and describing feelings (r = 0.416, p < 0.001) and a weak and positive correlation with externally oriented thinking (r = 0.221, p < 0.001). The total effect (β = 0.408, p < 0.001) of FoH on CPSQI comprised not only the direct (β = 0.293, 95% confidence interval: 0.174-0.411, p < 0.001) but also the indirect effect (β = 0.115, p < 0.001) of alexithymia.

Conclusions

Alexithymia can mediate the association between FoH and sleep quality. Clinicians should recognize the potential effect of alexithymia and incorporate it in intervention planning and care. Addressing the affective disturbances arising from FoH can enhance emotional expression and sleep quality among T2DM patients.

Relationships of multidimensional factors to self-management in patients with diabetes: A Cross-sectional, correlational study

Poor self-management in patients with diabetes is a consistent issue, leading to diabetes complications. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships of demographic, cognitive, psychological, social, and physiological factors to self-management in patients with diabetes. In this cross-sectional, correlational study, data were collected from 98 patients through REDCap in 2023. Multiple regression analysis was used to address the study purpose. In the sample, adherence to adequate self-management was poor. Knowledge, self-efficacy, and body mass index (BMI) were associated with overall diabetes self-management. Self-efficacy and BMI were associated with diet and exercise. Knowledge and self-efficacy were associated with blood glucose testing. No factors were associated with smoking and foot care. In conclusion, different factors were associated with different types of self-management, but BMI and self-efficacy were associated with most types of self-management. Clinicians and researchers can target BMI, self-efficacy, and knowledge to improve self-management in patients with diabetes.

Perceived stigma in burn survivors: Associations with resourcefulness and alexithymia

OBJECTIVE

Burn survivors often have severe scarring and distorted body image, and they are commonly given new perceptions and even receive a variety of negative labels from individuals, families and society. This study aimed to explore the association between stigma, resourcefulness and alexithymia, and identifies whether resourcefulness in burn survivors is mediating the relationship between resourcefulness and alexithymia.

METHOD

This correlational study was conducted from December 2021 to July 2022 in a comprehensive tertiary Grade A hospital in Ningxia, China. A convenience sample of 159 burn survivors was recruited. Data were collected using demographics, Social Impact Scale(SIC),Toronto Alexithymia Scale, and Resourcefulness Scale (RS). Descriptive analysis, Hierarchical Regression analysis, Pearson Correlation analysis, and Mediation analysis were used for data analysis.

RESULTS

Finally, a data set of 148 responses was determined for analysis. The effective rate was 95.9%. We found significant correlation between stigma, resourcefulness and alexithymia. Sociodemographic characteristics (gender, spouse states), clinical characteristics (body surface burned area, scar areas), resourcefulness and alexithymia of burn survivors were significant predictors of stigma among burn survivors. The mediating effect of resourcefulness between stigma and alexithymia in burns survivors accounted for 36.03% of the total effect.

CONCLUSION

Resourcefulness partially mediates the relationship between stigma and alexithymia. These findings suggest medical staff should strengthen the management of the mental health of burn survivors and eliminate the negative cognition and tendency of burn survivors by regularly promoting stigma counseling measures based on cognitive behavioral therapy. Based on the resourcefulness theory, psychological counseling and intervention are carried out in various ways to fully mobilize their internal factors for positive emotional regulation and enhance the ability of individuals to cope with adversity. In addition, an attempt was made to establish an "anti-stigma coalition" or "peer support group" for burn survivors to provide networked information support and emotional support to facilitate further the smooth return of patients to their families and society.

Alexithymia and asthma: a systematic review

Growing evidence from scientific research elucidates the important role of alexithymia in chronic immune diseases. This Review aims to explore the presence of alexithymia in patients affected by asthma and clarify its associations with other involved psychological and physical factors. In January 2023, according to PRISMA guidelines, a systematic search using PubMed and Scopus was conducted. Twenty-six studies were eligible based on inclusion criteria. Alexithymia was significantly present in asthma patients, with most studies reporting a higher prevalence (from 9 to 62.8%) than in control groups (approximately 10%). The coexistence of asthma and alexithymia was associated with a worse quality of life, psychiatric comorbidity, poor symptom control, and difficulty in recognizing exacerbations of the disease. These results suggest that alexithymia can negatively impact the management of asthma. For this reason, we recommend an accuracy assessment in clinical settings and the implementation of psychological interventions to promote the emotional and physical wellbeing of asthmatic patients.

The mediating role of perceived social support: alexithymia and parental burnout in parents of children with autism spectrum disorder

Background

Parental burnout is a concept that reflects the emotional exhaustion and emotional distance of parents from children due to their inability to cope with the pressure of parenting. It has been confirmed that parents of autistic children are at higher risk for parental burnout. Additional research has suggested a relationship between parental burnout and parents' personality traits. However, the relationship between alexithymia, an independent personality factor, with parental burnout is little to none.

Objective

To look into the connection between parental burnout and alexithymia among parents of autistic children.

Method

Three hundred and one parents were approached for recruitment and data were collected from 203 parents through a cross-sectional survey assessing parental burnout, alexithymia status, and perceived social support. Because the data is not normally distributed, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient rho(p) was used to assess the correlation between the variables; and then using AMOS to analyze the mediating effects of perceived social support and the moderating effect of gender.

Result

The result showed that (1) There is a negative association between alexithymia with parental burnout (β = 0.6, p < 0.01), while perceive social support was the negative predictor of alexithymia (β = -0.45, p < 0.01) and parental burnout (β = -0.26, p < 0.01); (2) perceive social support partially mediated the relationship between alexithymia and parental burnout of parents of autistic children, which can explain 16.3% of the total effect; (3) Gender plays a moderating role in the first half of the indirect effect of alexithymia on parental burnout, as evidenced by the significant difference in path coefficients between the male and female models (male: β = -0.10, p < 0.05; female: β = -0.60, p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Health professionals and policymakers should be aware of parental burnout among parents of autistic children in China and take early intervention steps. Furthermore, they should recognize the negative impact of alexithymia and the positive impact of social support when developing plans to alleviate parental burnout in children with autism, with a particular focus on mothers with alexithymia, who are more likely to experience low social support and burnout than fathers with alexithymia.