Occurrence of Alexithymia and Its Association with Sports Practice from a Sample of University Students: Results from a French Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to assess the prevalence of alexithymia in a sample of university students and to determine its association with specific sports practice characteristics (competition and training). Methods: In this cross-sectional study, anthropometric data and characteristics of sport practice were collected, as well as level of alexithymia (Toronto Alexithymia Scale, (TAS-20)). Results: The study included 253 French university students who completed a questionnaire specifying their regular sports practice and level of alexithymia (TAS-20). We found 76 subjects (30%) who had proven alexithymia and 92 (36.4%) who were borderline alexithymic. A significant positive relationship between alexithymia and the weekly amount of training practice was observed. It should be noted that students who engage in more than 5 h of physical activity are more prone to be borderline or alexithymic (respectively, 19.6 and 19.7% versus 7.1% for non-alexithymics; p = 0.03). Conclusion: With a 30% frequency, alexithymia is more prevalent in this context than in the general population. Furthermore, alexithymia and borderline alexithymia are most favorably associated with higher physical activity (over 5 h per week).