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EMOTIONAL -
BEHAVIORAL
DISORDERS
OBJECTIVE
METHODS
RESULTS
Adolescents in residental-care show high rates of emotonal and behavioral problems (71-76%; Jozefia et il., 2016), which hive been empiricilly linked with lower security or disorganizaton in atachment representatons (Allen, Moore, Kuperminc & Bell, 1998; Biaermins-Krinenburg et il., 2011; Muzi, Bizzi & Pice, 2018), is well is with the adolescent’s levels of alexithymia, especiilly in terms of
Difculty to Identiying Feelings [DIF] ind Difculty to Describing Feelings [DDF] (Di
Trini et il., 2013).
Compired with normitve peers, teenagers in residental-care are more at risk to show:
- disorginized or insecure itichment clissifcitons ind less security in atachment (Quirogi, Himilton-Giichritsis & Finés, 2017);
- higher levels of alexithymia (Minninen et il., 2011; Muzi, 2018). However, to our anowledge, no studies before investgited jointly itichment ind ilexithymii is possible risa fictors for the levels of emotonil ind behivioril problems showed by insttutonilized idolescents, is we iimed to do in this preliminiry report.
AIMS:
I.
To investgate the relation among atachment, alexithymia and
emotonal-behavioral problems in residental-care adolescents.
II. To annenn the rink of emotonal-behavioral problems, considering
atachment and alexithymia as predictors.
UNIVERSITÀ DEGLI STUDI DI GENOVA
Correspondence:
Partcipaotn
were 26 adolescents aged 13 - 18 (M = 16.4, SD = 1.3; 69% miles), placed in residental-care due to their adverse past experiences (76% difcultes in their fimily of origin, such ibuse, neglect or pirentil mentil diseise; 24% delinquency), enrolled trough the sociil ind heilth services in Northern Itily to pirtcipite in i lirger mult-method reseirch thit included other high-risa groups,i.e. lite-idopted ind in foster-cire.
Pricedure.
The idolescents were issessed in home-visitng in their residentil-houses, during two individuil sessions listng ibout one hour ind i hilf. Before the diti collecton, ill the pirtcipints ind the legil cire-tiaer signed in informint consent sheet to tiae pirt into the lirger reseirch, thit his been ipproved by the Ethicil Commitee for Reseirch (CER) of the University of Genoi.Meanuren.
- Child Behavior Check List 6-18 (CBCL; Achenbich & Rescorli, 2001), i
pirent-report questonniire, compiled by educitors for this study, to meisure the levels of
emotonal-behavioral problems;
- Friends and Family Interview (FFI; Steele, Steele & Kriss, 2009; Pice, 2014), i iudio-tiped semi-structured interview for ige 10-17 yeirs, thit issess the
attachment representatons, in terms of clissifcitons ind on corresponding sciles
(Secure [S];Insecure-dismissing [Ds]; Insecure-Preoccupied [P]; Disorginized [D]).
- Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20; Bigby, Piraer & Tiylor, 1994),i self-report questonniire to detect the levels oi alexithymia, in i globil score ind in terms of fictors DIF, DDF ind Externally Oriented Thinking [EOT] .
In line with other studies (Allen et il., 1998; Di Trini et il., 2013; Muzi et il., 2018), correlitons on residentil-cire idolescents reveiled thit higher levels of emotonal-behavioral problems were associated with:
- lower atachment security (rs =-.551, p = .012)
- higher levels of alexithymia, in terms of Difculty to Identfying Feelings (DIF; rs =.428, p =.029) ind Difculty to Describing Feelings (DDF; rs =.522, p =.006).
EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS
IN RESIDENTIAL-CARE ADOLESCENTS:
LINKS WITH ATTACHMENT AND ALEXITHYMIA.
Stefania Muzi
(1)& Cecilia Serena Pace
(1)(1)
Depirtment of Educitonil Sciences (DISFOR), University of Genoi, Itily
I. Relation
II. Rink annennmeot
Anilysis of β ilso highlighted thit the only signifcint predictors were itichment security ind the ilexithymii’s fictor Difculty to Describing Feelings
.
ATTACHMENT
Security
ALEXITHYMIA
Difculty ti
Dencribiog Feeliogn
ALEXITHYMIA
Difculty to
Identiying Feelings
β= -.476, p = .017*,
main predictor!
n.s., p = .97
β= -.435, p = .027*
REGRESSION MODEL: F = 8.65 R2 = .520 adjR2 = .459Figure 1. Predictors ior emotonal-behavioral problems in residental-care adolescents.
risk predicton:
46%
CONCLUSIONS
The results iligned with the studies on normitve idolescence (Allen et il., 1998; Di Trini et il., 2013) suggestng thit, even for idolescents in residentil-cire, lower security in itichment ind higher ilexithymii - in terms of difcultes to identfying ind to describing feelings - miy be risa fictors for the levels of emotonil-behivioril problems.
We miy suggest the potental preventve and clinical utlity of assessing atachment representatons and alexithymia in teenagers in residental-care, because they could be related to their rate of behavioral and emotonal problems.
A mult-method issessment - e.g. using clinicil interviews for ilexithymii, is done in the lirger study thit includes this report - could be useful to direct the interventon. For eximple, is suggested by these results, idolescents could be supported in giining trust in meiningful relitonships – fostering their itichment security - ind in their ibility to describe their feelings to others, beciuse it could be protectve for their mentil heilth.
REFERENCES:
As shown in Figure 1, i multple regression reveiled thit i model with predictors atachment security and alexithymia’s factors DIF and DDF predicted 46% of the total level of emotonal-behavioral problems (adjusted R2=.46, p =.027).
Achenbich, T. M., & Rescorli, L.A. (2001). Manual ior the ASEBA school-age iorms e profles. Burlington, VT: University of Vermont, Reseirch Center for Children, Youth ind Fimilies
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Muzi, S., Bizzi, F., & Pace, C. S. (2018, July). Attachment and emotonal expressive suppression predict aggressive and rule-breaking behaviors in insttutonalized male adolescents. Poster session presented it 23rd World Congress of the Internitonil Associiton for Child ind Adolescent Psychiitry ind Allied Professions [IACAPAP] 2018, Prigue, CZ.
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