Alexithymia Impairs the Cognitive Control of Negative Material While Facilitating the Recall of Neutral Material in Both Younger and Older Adults

Authors

Déborah Dressaire, Université Paul Valéry - Montpellier III
Charles B. Stone, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Kristy A. Nielson, Marquette UniversityFollow
Estelle Guerdoux, Université Paul Valéry - Montpellier III
Denis Brouillet, Université Montpellier III
Olivier Luminet, John Jay College of Criminal JusticeFollow

Document Type

Article

Language

eng

Format of Original

18 p.

Publication Date

5-23-2014

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Source Publication

Cognition and Emotion

Source ISSN

0269-9931

Original Item ID

doi: 10.1080/02699931.2014.919898

Abstract

We investigated the moderating impact of the personality construct alexithymia on the ability of younger and older adults to control the recall of negative and neutral material. We conducted two experiments using the directed forgetting paradigm with younger and older adults. Participants studied negative (Experiment 1) or neutral (Experiment 2) words. Participants were instructed to forget the first half and remember the second half of an entire list of words. Overall, we found that alexithymia impairs the ability of both younger and older adults to cognitively control negative material (through both recall and inhibition). The “externally oriented thinking” factor of alexithymia appears to play a particularly pertinent role in terms of inhibiting negative material. Furthermore, older adults recalled fewer sought after negative items, but this was not evident in terms of inhibition. In contrast, only age (older adults) negatively impacted the recall of sought after neutral items. Interestingly, alexithymia had the opposite effect: the “difficulty in identifying emotions” factor of alexithymia was associated with an increased recall of neutral items. We discuss these results in terms of alexithymia and its impact on cognitive control.

Comments

Accepted version. Cognition and Emotion, Vol. 28 (May 23, 2014): 442-459. DOI. © 2014 Taylor & Francis (Routledge). Used with permission.

Recommended Citation

Dressaire, Déborah; Stone, Charles B.; Nielson, Kristy A.; Guerdoux, Estelle; Brouillet, Denis; and Luminet, Olivier, "Alexithymia Impairs the Cognitive Control of Negative Material While Facilitating the Recall of Neutral Material in Both Younger and Older Adults" (2014). Psychology Faculty Research and Publications. 126.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/psych_fac/126