The Relation of Alexithymia and Cognitive /Behavioral Coping Strategies with Psychological Vulnerability of Women with Somatization Disorder

Background: There is little information about the relationship of alexithymia and cognitive/behavioral coping strategies with psychological vulnerability. The recent studies indicate that alexithymia and coping strategies affect psychological vulnerability. The present study aims to determine the relationship of alexithymia and cognitive/behavioral coping strategies with psychological vulnerability of women with somatization disorder. Materials and Methods: The samples of this study included 120 patients with somatization disorder who were selected as convenience sampling among those who attended the psychology centers of Ardabil. Pain coping questionnaire, alexithymia questionnaire, and symptom questionnaire were used to collect the information. The research data were analyzed using the Pearson’s correlation coefficient and multivariate regression analysis methods. Results: The results indicated that there are significant correlations between alexithymia (r = 0.52), cognitive coping strategies (r = -0.27), behavioral coping strategies (r = -0.33) and psychological vulnerability of women with somatization disorder. The results of step-by-step multivariate regression analysis suggested that alexithymia and cognitive/ behavioral coping strategies clarifies 37 percent of the variance of psychological vulnerability of women with somatization disorder. Conclusion: These findings indicate that cognitive/behavioral coping strategies and alexithymia are associated to psychological vulnerability of women with somatization disorder. In addition, these results have special application in prevention, pathology as well as psychotherapy of this disorder.