PROJECT
Alexithymia - Assessment and Intervention
Understanding emotional blindness
People with alexithymia (no words for emotions) tend to have problems in the interpersonal world. They display difficulties in identifying and describing their own emotions. Alexithymia has been found to be a vulnerability factor for several psychological presentations.
This research project will:
- further validate the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire
- investigate the association between Alexithymia and related emotional constructs (e.g., emotion regulation, emotion reactivity)
- investigate the presence of Alexithymia in both clinical and non-clinical populations and test a pilot intervention program aimed at improving alexithymic features
For more background information see the suggested readings below.
- Suggested readings
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Preece, D., Becerra, R., Robinson, K., Dandy, J., & Allan, A. (2018). The psychometric assessment of alexithymia: Development and validation of the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire. Personality and Individual Differences, 132, 32-44.
- Cruise, K. E., & Becerra, R. (2017). Alexithymia and problematic alcohol use: A critical update. Addictive behaviors. 232-246.
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Preece, D., Becerra, R., Robinson, K., & Dandy, J. (2017). Assessing alexithymia: Psychometric properties and factorial invariance of the 20-Item Toronto alexithymia scale in nonclinical and psychiatric samples. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 1-12.
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McGillivray, L., Becerra, R., & Harms, C. (2017). Prevalence and demographic correlates of alexithymia: a comparison between Australian psychiatric and community samples. Journal of clinical psychology, 73(1), 76-87.
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Becerra, R., Amos, A., & Jongenelis, S. (2002). Organic alexithymia: a study of acquired emotional blindness. Brain Injury, 16(7), 633-645.
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Research team leader: Associate Professor Rodrigo Becerra
I am a Clinical Psychologist with interest in emotions and psychopathology. My research focuses on the assessment and therapy for emotional difficulties in a variety of diagnoses (e.g., bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder, etc.). Intervention for emotion dysregulation, reactivity, and/or awareness is a growing and promising field within clinical psychology. In our clinic at UWA, we are testing new assessment measures and therapeutic programs aimed at improving regulatory skills.
How to apply
Interested in becoming part of this project? Complete the following steps to submit your expression of interest:
Step 1 - Check criteria
General UWA PhD entrance requirements can be found on the Future Students website.
Step 2 - Submit enquiry to research team leader
Step 3 - Lodge application
After you have discussed your project with the research team leader, you should be in a position to proceed to the next step of the UWA application process: Lodge an application. Different application procedures apply to domestic and international students.
Scholarships
- Domestic students
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All domestic students may apply for Research Training Program and University Postgraduate Awards (UPA) scholarships
- International students
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A range of scholarships are available from international organisations and governments. The full list, organised by country, is available on the Future Students website.
In addition, all international students may apply for International Research Training Program scholarships.
- Indigenous students
- Indigenous students are encouraged to apply for Indigenous Postgraduate Research Supplementary Scholarships.
- Forrest Foundation scholarships
- All international and Australian students who wish to study towards the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at The University of Western Australia may apply for Forrest Scholarships.
