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Toronto Alexithymia Scale

Toronto Alexithymia Scale

What is TAS-20

The Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS) was developed in 1985 as the first reliable and valid self-report measure of the alexithymia construct. It was modified in 1992 to develop a revised and improved twenty-item version, which is called the Twenty-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). The test measures explicitly the three distinct factors of alexithymia: difficulty identifying emotions (7 items), difficulty describing emotions (5 items), and externally oriented thinking (9 items).

TAS-20 Printable PDF

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TAS-20 Scoring and Interpretation

The TAS-20 has 3 subscales:

  • Factor I - Difficulty Identifying Feelings - Items 1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 13, 14
  • Factor II - Difficulty Describing Feelings - Items 2, 4, 11, 12, 17
  • Factor III - Externally-Oriented Thinking - Items 5, 8, 10, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20

Each item is scored on a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree; 5 = strongly agree).

Note: Items 4, 5, 10, 18. and 19 are negatively keyed.

Scoring range: 20–100 (higher scores indicate greater impairment/challenges).

TAS-20 cutoff scores

Table 5
TAS-20 ScoreInterpretation

equal to or less than 51

non-alexithymia

52 to 60

possible alexithymia

equal to or greater than 61

alexithymia

The results from the taxometric investigations indicate that the TAS-20 ought to yield continuous scores rather than categorical scores.

PsyPack can automatically score the TAS-20 assessment and prepare corresponding tables and graphs.

TAS-20 sample result

Further, PsyPack automatically plots a graph to help you easily track progress over time.

TAS-20 track progress

Sample Report of TAS-20

Domain

Alexithymia, Emotion Regulation, Emotions, Personality, Personality Disorders

What does TAS-20 measure

The purpose of the evaluation is to:

  • measure alexithymia.

Administration

Self-administered

Type of outcome tool

Clinical

Assessment modes

Questionnaire

Age and eligibility

16 years and above

Estimated time

5-10 minutes

Notes

Since the questionnaire relies on client self-report, all responses should be verified by the clinician, and a definitive diagnosis is made on clinical grounds taking into account how well the client understood the questionnaire, as well as other relevant information from the client. An inability of some individuals with high levels of alexithymia to evaluate accurately their awareness of emotional feelings can lead to potentially biased self-reports.

The TAS-20 is a reliable and valid instrument and accurately reflects and measures the construct as it was originally defined by Nemiah et al. Nemiah et al. (1976) as composed of deficits in affect awareness and expression and pensée opératoire (operational thinking). Clinicians and researchers can use the TAS-20 to confidently measure alexithymia, the roots of which have foundations in psychosomatic medicine.

The results from the taxometric investigations indicate that the TAS-20, TSIA, and other measures of alexithymia ought to yield continuous scores rather than categorical scores. The authors have therefore recommended that clinicians should avoid telling patients that they are either alexithymic or non-alexithymic, and to explain instead that like most other personality traits, people show varying degrees of alexithymia. Further, the authoirs recommend that researchers analyze TAS-20 scores as a continuous variable rather than classify participants into alexithymic and nonalexithymic groups. However, there may be some studies, such as certain neuroimaging studies, for which the TAS-20 cutoff scores are useful to identify groups of individuals with extreme levels (high or low) of alexithymia.

Attribution and References

Bagby, R. M., Parker, J. D., & Taylor, G. J. (1994). The twenty-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale–I. Item selection and cross-validation of the factor structure. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 38(1), 23–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-3999(94)90005-1