The TAS-202223 is a 20-item self-report that is one of the most commonly used measures of alexithymia. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (from 1 = Strongly disagree to 5 = Strongly agree) indicating the degree to which each statement describes the respondent’s behavior. It contains the following three subscales, theoretically formulated and confirmed through factor analysis23: (1) Difficulty Describing Feelings (DDF) refers to difficulty describing and communicating emotions, (2) Difficulty Identifying Feeling (DIF) refers to difficulty identifying emotions, (3) Externally-Oriented Thinking (EOT) concerns the tendency of individuals to focus their attention externally. The TAS total score (ranging from 20 to 100) corresponds to the general level of alexithymia. In the present study we used the Italian version of the TAS26. The Cronbach’s α in the present sample was 0.90 for the TAS-20 total score.
