Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41807704›Full record

ArticleCommunications psychology2026

Individual differences in alexithymia modulate cognition-emotion interactions in daily life ongoing experiences.

Anqi Lei, Md Faysal, Louis Chitiz, Raven Wallace, Samyogita Hardikar, Brontë McKeown, Jonathan Smallwood, Elizabeth Jefferies, Robert Leech, Nerissa Ho

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Communications psychology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Anqi LeiSchool of Psychology, Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9627-1184
Md FaysalSchool of Psychology, Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6674-6249
Louis ChitizDepartment of Psychology, Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
Raven WallaceDepartment of Psychology, Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
Samyogita HardikarDepartment of Psychology, Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4380-5055
Brontë McKeownDepartment of Psychology, Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4204-2001
Jonathan SmallwoodDepartment of Psychology, Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7298-2459
Elizabeth JefferiesDepartment of Psychology, University of York, York, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3826-4330
Robert LeechInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5801-6318
Nerissa HoSchool of Psychology, Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK. nerissa.ho@plymouth.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7520-7549

Funding

British Academy SRG 2020-21
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Individual differences modulate our thoughts and emotional experiences, yet how thought and emotion interact in daily life remains largely unclear. We leverage alexithymia, a trait reflecting atypical emotional awareness, to reveal these interactions in naturalistic settings. Using multi-dimensional experience sampling via smartphones, we captured moment-to-moment thought patterns and concurrent affective states (valence, arousal, stress) in people's daily life (N  =  190 undergraduate students, age range = 18 to 36, 159 females). Using Principal Component Analysis and Linear Mixed Models, we identified four thought dimensions that relate differently to these affective states: future-self orientation, intrusive distraction, sensory engagement, and task-focus. Alexithymia modulated these relationships. High overall alexithymia predicted fewer future-self-oriented thoughts and greater variability in sensory engagement across affective and social contexts, while difficulty identifying feelings selectively reduced future-self orientation during intense sadness, and externally oriented thinking rendered thought patterns less sensitive to affective context. By mapping affective experiences onto thought dimensions, these findings uncover cognitive pathways that connect to emotional well-being, providing a scalable framework for understanding variability in human affective experience.

Identifiers

PMID41807704
PMCPMC13106792

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.