Deter the emotions: Alexithymia, impulsivity and their relationship to binge drinking. (December 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Herman, Aleksandra M.; Pilcher, Nathalia; Duka, Theodora
• Is Part Of: Addictive behaviors reports. Volume 12(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-12
• Subjects: Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) -- Emotional facial expression recognition -- Alexithymia, binge drinking, alcohol, college students; Compulsive behavior -- Periodicals; 616.8584
• DOI: 10.1016/j.abrep.2020.100308
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2352-8532

Abstract

Graphical abstract: Highlights: We investigated the combined role of alexithymia and impulsivity to binge drinking. Alexithymia and trait impulsivity individually predicted binge drinking. Impulsivity partially mediated the alexithymia – binge-drinking relationship. Binge drinking was also related to differences in facial expression judgements. Abstract: Introduction: The relevance of both emotion processing and impulsivity to alcohol use and misuse is increasingly recognised, yet there is a scarcity of studies addressing their reciprocal interaction. The present study aimed to examine the role that difficulties in emotion processing and trait impulsivity play in explaining binge drinking pattern of alcohol use in student population. We looked at binge drinking, as it is a risk factor to later alcohol abuse and is a common alcohol drinking habit among students. Alexithymia (from Greek as "deter/repel emotions"), a difficulty in identifying and describing feelings in self and others is increasingly recognised as a feature of alcohol misuse. Methods: One-hundred and seventy-four student alcohol drinkers were assessed for their drinking habits (Alcohol Use Questionnaire), as well as for alexithymia (Toronto Alexithymia Scale) and impulsivity trait (Barratt Impulsiveness Scale); facial emotional expression judgements were also tested. Results: A direct relationships between, both, alexithymia and impulsivity, and binge drinking was found. When combined, trait impulsivity partially mediated the relationship between alexithymia and binge drinking. Facial emotional expression judgements also showed a relationship with binge drinking. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of both emotion processing and impulsivity in understanding binge drinking and indicate potential routes for prevention and intervention techniques, especially towards those who may be at risk of later alcohol abuse.