Genetic and Environmental Factors in Alexithymia: A Population-Based Study of 8,785 Danish Twin Pairs
Background: The role of genetic and environmental factors for developing alexithymia is still unclear, and the aim of this study was to examine these factors in a large population-based sample of twins. Methods: The Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) was included in a mail survey of 46,418 indivi...
Gespeichert in:
| Veröffentlicht in: | Psychotherapy and psychosomatics 2007-01, Vol.76 (6), p.369-375 |
|---|---|
| Hauptverfasser: | , , , |
| Format: | Artikel |
| Sprache: | eng |
| Schlagworte: | |
| Online-Zugang: | Volltext |
| Tags: |
Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
|
| container_end_page | 375 |
|---|---|
| container_issue | 6 |
| container_start_page | 369 |
| container_title | Psychotherapy and psychosomatics |
| container_volume | 76 |
| creator | Jørgensen, Michael Martini Zachariae, Robert Skytthe, Axel Kyvik, Kirsten |
| description | Background: The role of genetic and environmental factors for developing alexithymia is still unclear, and the aim of this study was to examine these factors in a large population-based sample of twins. Methods: The Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) was included in a mail survey of 46,418 individuals born between 1931 and 1982 and registered with the Danish Twin Registry. The response rate was 75.3%. A total of 8,785 twin pairs, where both cotwins had completed all items of the TAS-20, were selected for this study. Analyses were conducted for total TAS-20 scores and the subscales of (1) difficulties in identifying feelings, (2) difficulties in describing feelings, and (3) externally oriented thinking. The phenotypes were analyzed both as categorical and continuous data. Results: All measures of similarity suggested that genetic factors added to all facets of alexithymia. Structural equation modeling of the noncategorical data, an ACE model including additive genetic, shared environmental and nonshared environmental effects, provided the best fit for all three facets of alexithymia as well as total alexithymia scores, with heritabilities of 30–33% and the remaining variance being explained by shared (12–20%) and nonshared environmental effects (50–56%). Conclusion: The results from this large population-based sample suggest that genetic factors have a noticeable and similar impact on all facets of alexithymia. While the results suggested a moderate influence of shared environmental factors, our results are in concordance with the general finding that environmental influences on most psychological traits are primarily of the nonshared rather than the shared type. |
| doi_str_mv | 10.1159/000107565 |
| format | Article |
| fullrecord | <record><control><sourceid>jstor_pasca</sourceid><recordid>TN_cdi_pascalfrancis_primary_19112874</recordid><sourceformat>XML</sourceformat><sourcesystem>PC</sourcesystem><jstor_id>48511040</jstor_id><sourcerecordid>48511040</sourcerecordid><originalsourceid>FETCH-LOGICAL-c480t-6ec63814debaa28c99a53459f046243a8ff02992ce89149f729c812359fc96203</originalsourceid><addsrcrecordid>eNqF0U1LxDAQBuAgiq4fB-8qRVDwUJ1J0iY5LrKrguBFzyWbTbVrm2rSiv57Iy0qXjwlMA_zkjeE7COcI2bqAgAQRJZna2SCnLIUGJfrZALAWMpQwRbZDmEVmeACNskWCoXxyiYErqyzXWUS7ZbJzL1VvnWNdZ2uk7k2XetDUrlkWtv3qnv6aCq9SzZKXQe7N5475GE-u7-8Tm_vrm4up7ep4RK6NLcmZxL50i60ptIopTPGM1UCzylnWpYlUKWosVIhV6WgykikLAqjcgpsh5wOe198-9rb0BVNFYyta-1s24cilyyjHPFfSEFRoCAiPP4DV23vXXxEEXO5oAM6G5DxbQjelsWLrxrtPwqE4qvs4rvsaI_Ghf2iscsfObYbwckIdDC6Lr12pgo_TiFSKXh0B4N71v7R-l-RY87hMF6F-CHfUy4zRODAPgFKvpUT</addsrcrecordid><sourcetype>Aggregation Database</sourcetype><iscdi>true</iscdi><recordtype>article</recordtype><pqid>235472207</pqid></control><display><type>article</type><title>Genetic and Environmental Factors in Alexithymia: A Population-Based Study of 8,785 Danish Twin Pairs</title><source>MEDLINE</source><source>Jstor Complete Legacy</source><source>Karger Journals</source><creator>Jørgensen, Michael Martini ; Zachariae, Robert ; Skytthe, Axel ; Kyvik, Kirsten</creator><creatorcontrib>Jørgensen, Michael Martini ; Zachariae, Robert ; Skytthe, Axel ; Kyvik, Kirsten</creatorcontrib><description>Background: The role of genetic and environmental factors for developing alexithymia is still unclear, and the aim of this study was to examine these factors in a large population-based sample of twins. Methods: The Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) was included in a mail survey of 46,418 individuals born between 1931 and 1982 and registered with the Danish Twin Registry. The response rate was 75.3%. A total of 8,785 twin pairs, where both cotwins had completed all items of the TAS-20, were selected for this study. Analyses were conducted for total TAS-20 scores and the subscales of (1) difficulties in identifying feelings, (2) difficulties in describing feelings, and (3) externally oriented thinking. The phenotypes were analyzed both as categorical and continuous data. Results: All measures of similarity suggested that genetic factors added to all facets of alexithymia. Structural equation modeling of the noncategorical data, an ACE model including additive genetic, shared environmental and nonshared environmental effects, provided the best fit for all three facets of alexithymia as well as total alexithymia scores, with heritabilities of 30–33% and the remaining variance being explained by shared (12–20%) and nonshared environmental effects (50–56%). Conclusion: The results from this large population-based sample suggest that genetic factors have a noticeable and similar impact on all facets of alexithymia. While the results suggested a moderate influence of shared environmental factors, our results are in concordance with the general finding that environmental influences on most psychological traits are primarily of the nonshared rather than the shared type.</description><identifier>ISSN: 0033-3190</identifier><identifier>EISSN: 1423-0348</identifier><identifier>DOI: 10.1159/000107565</identifier><identifier>PMID: 17917473</identifier><identifier>CODEN: PSPSBF</identifier><language>eng</language><publisher>Basel, Switzerland: S. Karger AG</publisher><subject>Adult ; Affective Symptoms - genetics ; Affective Symptoms - psychology ; Aged ; Biological and medical sciences ; Cohort Studies ; Denmark ; Diseases in Twins - genetics ; Diseases in Twins - psychology ; Female ; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease - genetics ; Genotype ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data ; Personality traits ; Personality. Affectivity ; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry ; Psychology. Psychophysiology ; Psychometrics ; Registries ; Regular Article ; Social Environment</subject><ispartof>Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2007-01, Vol.76 (6), p.369-375</ispartof><rights>2007 S. Karger AG</rights><rights>2007 S. Karger AG, Basel</rights><rights>2008 INIST-CNRS</rights><rights>Copyright (c) 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel</rights><lds50>peer_reviewed</lds50><woscitedreferencessubscribed>false</woscitedreferencessubscribed><citedby>FETCH-LOGICAL-c480t-6ec63814debaa28c99a53459f046243a8ff02992ce89149f729c812359fc96203</citedby><cites>FETCH-LOGICAL-c480t-6ec63814debaa28c99a53459f046243a8ff02992ce89149f729c812359fc96203</cites></display><links><openurl>$$Topenurl_article</openurl><openurlfulltext>$$Topenurlfull_article</openurlfulltext><thumbnail>$$Tsyndetics_thumb_exl</thumbnail><linktopdf>$$Uhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/48511040$$EPDF$$P50$$Gjstor$$H</linktopdf><linktohtml>$$Uhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/48511040$$EHTML$$P50$$Gjstor$$H</linktohtml><link.rule.ids>314,776,780,799,2422,27903,27904,57995,58228</link.rule.ids><backlink>$$Uhttp://pascal-francis.inist.fr/vibad/index.php?action=getRecordDetail&idt=19112874$$DView record in Pascal Francis$$Hfree_for_read</backlink><backlink>$$Uhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17917473$$D View this record in MEDLINE/PubMed$$Hfree_for_read</backlink></links><search><creatorcontrib>Jørgensen, Michael Martini</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Zachariae, Robert</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Skytthe, Axel</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Kyvik, Kirsten</creatorcontrib><title>Genetic and Environmental Factors in Alexithymia: A Population-Based Study of 8,785 Danish Twin Pairs</title><title>Psychotherapy and psychosomatics</title><addtitle>Psychother Psychosom</addtitle><description>Background: The role of genetic and environmental factors for developing alexithymia is still unclear, and the aim of this study was to examine these factors in a large population-based sample of twins. Methods: The Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) was included in a mail survey of 46,418 individuals born between 1931 and 1982 and registered with the Danish Twin Registry. The response rate was 75.3%. A total of 8,785 twin pairs, where both cotwins had completed all items of the TAS-20, were selected for this study. Analyses were conducted for total TAS-20 scores and the subscales of (1) difficulties in identifying feelings, (2) difficulties in describing feelings, and (3) externally oriented thinking. The phenotypes were analyzed both as categorical and continuous data. Results: All measures of similarity suggested that genetic factors added to all facets of alexithymia. Structural equation modeling of the noncategorical data, an ACE model including additive genetic, shared environmental and nonshared environmental effects, provided the best fit for all three facets of alexithymia as well as total alexithymia scores, with heritabilities of 30–33% and the remaining variance being explained by shared (12–20%) and nonshared environmental effects (50–56%). Conclusion: The results from this large population-based sample suggest that genetic factors have a noticeable and similar impact on all facets of alexithymia. While the results suggested a moderate influence of shared environmental factors, our results are in concordance with the general finding that environmental influences on most psychological traits are primarily of the nonshared rather than the shared type.</description><subject>Adult</subject><subject>Affective Symptoms - genetics</subject><subject>Affective Symptoms - psychology</subject><subject>Aged</subject><subject>Biological and medical sciences</subject><subject>Cohort Studies</subject><subject>Denmark</subject><subject>Diseases in Twins - genetics</subject><subject>Diseases in Twins - psychology</subject><subject>Female</subject><subject>Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology</subject><subject>Genetic Predisposition to Disease - genetics</subject><subject>Genotype</subject><subject>Health Surveys</subject><subject>Humans</subject><subject>Male</subject><subject>Middle Aged</subject><subject>Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data</subject><subject>Personality traits</subject><subject>Personality. Affectivity</subject><subject>Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry</subject><subject>Psychology. Psychophysiology</subject><subject>Psychometrics</subject><subject>Registries</subject><subject>Regular Article</subject><subject>Social Environment</subject><issn>0033-3190</issn><issn>1423-0348</issn><fulltext>true</fulltext><rsrctype>article</rsrctype><creationdate>2007</creationdate><recordtype>article</recordtype><sourceid>EIF</sourceid><sourceid>ABUWG</sourceid><sourceid>AFKRA</sourceid><sourceid>AZQEC</sourceid><sourceid>BENPR</sourceid><sourceid>CCPQU</sourceid><sourceid>DWQXO</sourceid><sourceid>GNUQQ</sourceid><recordid>eNqF0U1LxDAQBuAgiq4fB-8qRVDwUJ1J0iY5LrKrguBFzyWbTbVrm2rSiv57Iy0qXjwlMA_zkjeE7COcI2bqAgAQRJZna2SCnLIUGJfrZALAWMpQwRbZDmEVmeACNskWCoXxyiYErqyzXWUS7ZbJzL1VvnWNdZ2uk7k2XetDUrlkWtv3qnv6aCq9SzZKXQe7N5475GE-u7-8Tm_vrm4up7ep4RK6NLcmZxL50i60ptIopTPGM1UCzylnWpYlUKWosVIhV6WgykikLAqjcgpsh5wOe198-9rb0BVNFYyta-1s24cilyyjHPFfSEFRoCAiPP4DV23vXXxEEXO5oAM6G5DxbQjelsWLrxrtPwqE4qvs4rvsaI_Ghf2iscsfObYbwckIdDC6Lr12pgo_TiFSKXh0B4N71v7R-l-RY87hMF6F-CHfUy4zRODAPgFKvpUT</recordid><startdate>20070101</startdate><enddate>20070101</enddate><creator>Jørgensen, Michael Martini</creator><creator>Zachariae, Robert</creator><creator>Skytthe, Axel</creator><creator>Kyvik, Kirsten</creator><general>S. Karger AG</general><general>Karger</general><scope>IQODW</scope><scope>CGR</scope><scope>CUY</scope><scope>CVF</scope><scope>ECM</scope><scope>EIF</scope><scope>NPM</scope><scope>AAYXX</scope><scope>CITATION</scope><scope>3V.</scope><scope>7QL</scope><scope>7QP</scope><scope>7QR</scope><scope>7RV</scope><scope>7T7</scope><scope>7TK</scope><scope>7U9</scope><scope>7X7</scope><scope>7XB</scope><scope>88E</scope><scope>88G</scope><scope>88I</scope><scope>8AF</scope><scope>8AO</scope><scope>8FD</scope><scope>8FI</scope><scope>8FJ</scope><scope>8FK</scope><scope>ABUWG</scope><scope>AFKRA</scope><scope>AZQEC</scope><scope>BENPR</scope><scope>C1K</scope><scope>CCPQU</scope><scope>DWQXO</scope><scope>FR3</scope><scope>FYUFA</scope><scope>GHDGH</scope><scope>GNUQQ</scope><scope>H94</scope><scope>HCIFZ</scope><scope>K9.</scope><scope>KB0</scope><scope>M0S</scope><scope>M1P</scope><scope>M2M</scope><scope>M2P</scope><scope>M7N</scope><scope>NAPCQ</scope><scope>P64</scope><scope>PQEST</scope><scope>PQQKQ</scope><scope>PQUKI</scope><scope>PRINS</scope><scope>PSYQQ</scope><scope>Q9U</scope><scope>S0X</scope><scope>RC3</scope><scope>7X8</scope></search><sort><creationdate>20070101</creationdate><title>Genetic and Environmental Factors in Alexithymia</title><author>Jørgensen, Michael Martini ; Zachariae, Robert ; Skytthe, Axel ; Kyvik, Kirsten</author></sort><facets><frbrtype>5</frbrtype><frbrgroupid>cdi_FETCH-LOGICAL-c480t-6ec63814debaa28c99a53459f046243a8ff02992ce89149f729c812359fc96203</frbrgroupid><rsrctype>articles</rsrctype><prefilter>articles</prefilter><language>eng</language><creationdate>2007</creationdate><topic>Adult</topic><topic>Affective Symptoms - genetics</topic><topic>Affective Symptoms - psychology</topic><topic>Aged</topic><topic>Biological and medical sciences</topic><topic>Cohort Studies</topic><topic>Denmark</topic><topic>Diseases in Twins - genetics</topic><topic>Diseases in Twins - psychology</topic><topic>Female</topic><topic>Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology</topic><topic>Genetic Predisposition to Disease - genetics</topic><topic>Genotype</topic><topic>Health Surveys</topic><topic>Humans</topic><topic>Male</topic><topic>Middle Aged</topic><topic>Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data</topic><topic>Personality traits</topic><topic>Personality. Affectivity</topic><topic>Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry</topic><topic>Psychology. Psychophysiology</topic><topic>Psychometrics</topic><topic>Registries</topic><topic>Regular Article</topic><topic>Social Environment</topic><toplevel>peer_reviewed</toplevel><toplevel>online_resources</toplevel><creatorcontrib>Jørgensen, Michael Martini</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Zachariae, Robert</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Skytthe, Axel</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Kyvik, Kirsten</creatorcontrib><collection>Pascal-Francis</collection><collection>Medline</collection><collection>MEDLINE</collection><collection>MEDLINE (Ovid)</collection><collection>MEDLINE</collection><collection>MEDLINE</collection><collection>PubMed</collection><collection>CrossRef</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (Corporate)</collection><collection>Bacteriology Abstracts (Microbiology B)</collection><collection>Calcium & Calcified Tissue Abstracts</collection><collection>Chemoreception Abstracts</collection><collection>Nursing & Allied Health Database</collection><collection>Industrial and Applied Microbiology Abstracts (Microbiology A)</collection><collection>Neurosciences Abstracts</collection><collection>Virology and AIDS Abstracts</collection><collection>Health & Medical Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (purchase pre-March 2016)</collection><collection>Medical Database (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>Psychology Database (Alumni)</collection><collection>Science Database (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>STEM Database</collection><collection>ProQuest Pharma Collection</collection><collection>Technology Research Database</collection><collection>Hospital Premium Collection</collection><collection>Hospital Premium Collection (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (Alumni) (purchase pre-March 2016)</collection><collection>ProQuest Central (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>ProQuest Central UK/Ireland</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Essentials</collection><collection>ProQuest Central</collection><collection>Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management</collection><collection>ProQuest One Community College</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Korea</collection><collection>Engineering Research Database</collection><collection>Health Research Premium Collection</collection><collection>Health Research Premium Collection (Alumni)</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Student</collection><collection>AIDS and Cancer Research Abstracts</collection><collection>SciTech Premium Collection</collection><collection>ProQuest Health & Medical Complete (Alumni)</collection><collection>Nursing & Allied Health Database (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>Health & Medical Collection (Alumni Edition)</collection><collection>Medical Database</collection><collection>ProQuest Psychology</collection><collection>Science Database</collection><collection>Algology Mycology and Protozoology Abstracts (Microbiology C)</collection><collection>Nursing & Allied Health Premium</collection><collection>Biotechnology and BioEngineering Abstracts</collection><collection>ProQuest One Academic Eastern Edition (DO NOT USE)</collection><collection>ProQuest One Academic</collection><collection>ProQuest One Academic UKI Edition</collection><collection>ProQuest Central China</collection><collection>ProQuest One Psychology</collection><collection>ProQuest Central Basic</collection><collection>SIRS Editorial</collection><collection>Genetics Abstracts</collection><collection>MEDLINE - Academic</collection><jtitle>Psychotherapy and psychosomatics</jtitle></facets><delivery><delcategory>Remote Search Resource</delcategory><fulltext>fulltext</fulltext></delivery><addata><au>Jørgensen, Michael Martini</au><au>Zachariae, Robert</au><au>Skytthe, Axel</au><au>Kyvik, Kirsten</au><format>journal</format><genre>article</genre><ristype>JOUR</ristype><atitle>Genetic and Environmental Factors in Alexithymia: A Population-Based Study of 8,785 Danish Twin Pairs</atitle><jtitle>Psychotherapy and psychosomatics</jtitle><addtitle>Psychother Psychosom</addtitle><date>2007-01-01</date><risdate>2007</risdate><volume>76</volume><issue>6</issue><spage>369</spage><epage>375</epage><pages>369-375</pages><issn>0033-3190</issn><eissn>1423-0348</eissn><coden>PSPSBF</coden><abstract>Background: The role of genetic and environmental factors for developing alexithymia is still unclear, and the aim of this study was to examine these factors in a large population-based sample of twins. Methods: The Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) was included in a mail survey of 46,418 individuals born between 1931 and 1982 and registered with the Danish Twin Registry. The response rate was 75.3%. A total of 8,785 twin pairs, where both cotwins had completed all items of the TAS-20, were selected for this study. Analyses were conducted for total TAS-20 scores and the subscales of (1) difficulties in identifying feelings, (2) difficulties in describing feelings, and (3) externally oriented thinking. The phenotypes were analyzed both as categorical and continuous data. Results: All measures of similarity suggested that genetic factors added to all facets of alexithymia. Structural equation modeling of the noncategorical data, an ACE model including additive genetic, shared environmental and nonshared environmental effects, provided the best fit for all three facets of alexithymia as well as total alexithymia scores, with heritabilities of 30–33% and the remaining variance being explained by shared (12–20%) and nonshared environmental effects (50–56%). Conclusion: The results from this large population-based sample suggest that genetic factors have a noticeable and similar impact on all facets of alexithymia. While the results suggested a moderate influence of shared environmental factors, our results are in concordance with the general finding that environmental influences on most psychological traits are primarily of the nonshared rather than the shared type.</abstract><cop>Basel, Switzerland</cop><pub>S. Karger AG</pub><pmid>17917473</pmid><doi>10.1159/000107565</doi><tpages>7</tpages></addata></record> |
| fulltext | fulltext |
| identifier | ISSN: 0033-3190 |
| ispartof | Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2007-01, Vol.76 (6), p.369-375 |
| issn | 0033-3190 1423-0348 |
| language | eng |
| recordid | cdi_pascalfrancis_primary_19112874 |
| source | MEDLINE; Jstor Complete Legacy; Karger Journals |
| subjects | Adult Affective Symptoms - genetics Affective Symptoms - psychology Aged Biological and medical sciences Cohort Studies Denmark Diseases in Twins - genetics Diseases in Twins - psychology Female Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology Genetic Predisposition to Disease - genetics Genotype Health Surveys Humans Male Middle Aged Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data Personality traits Personality. Affectivity Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry Psychology. Psychophysiology Psychometrics Registries Regular Article Social Environment |
| title | Genetic and Environmental Factors in Alexithymia: A Population-Based Study of 8,785 Danish Twin Pairs |
| url | https://sfx.bib-bvb.de/sfx_tum?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_tim=2025-01-25T13%3A20%3A31IST&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=infofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com:primo3-Article-jstor_pasca&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Genetic%20and%20Environmental%20Factors%20in%20Alexithymia:%20A%20Population-Based%20Study%20of%208,785%20Danish%20Twin%20Pairs&rft.jtitle=Psychotherapy%20and%20psychosomatics&rft.au=J%C3%B8rgensen,%20Michael%20Martini&rft.date=2007-01-01&rft.volume=76&rft.issue=6&rft.spage=369&rft.epage=375&rft.pages=369-375&rft.issn=0033-3190&rft.eissn=1423-0348&rft.coden=PSPSBF&rft_id=info:doi/10.1159/000107565&rft_dat=%3Cjstor_pasca%3E48511040%3C/jstor_pasca%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E&disable_directlink=true&sfx.directlink=off&sfx.report_link=0&rft_id=info:oai/&rft_pqid=235472207&rft_id=info:pmid/17917473&rft_jstor_id=48511040&rfr_iscdi=true |