Deficit in the Emotional Embodiment in Alexithymia

摘要: Alexithymia refers to difficulties in recognizing one’s own emotions and others emotions. Theories of emotional embodiment suggest that, order understand other peoples’ feelings, observers re-experience, or simulate, the relevant component (i.e. somatic, motor, visceral) emotion’s expressed by self. In this way, are “embodied”. Critically, date, there no studies investigating ability alexithymic individuals embodying conveyed faces. In present dissertation different implicit paradigms techniques falling within field affective neuroscience have been employed test a possible deficit alexithymia while subjects were requested observe faces manifesting expression: fear, disgust, happiness neutral. The level perceptual encoding somato-sensory sensory-motor system investigated. Moreover, non-communicative motor reaction stimuli visceral reactions) interoceptive abilities explored. The provided convergent evidences support processing fearful expression with high personality traits. Indeed, pattern fear induced changes encoding, somato-motor (both communicative non one) is widely consistently altered alexithymia. This hypothesis diminished responses alexithymia. In addition, overall results on although preliminary, interesting results. revealed defective coupled slight difficulty delayed responses) at system, emotion disgust has found be abnormally embodied system.