Is it advisable to use the Scored Archetypal Test 9 (SAT.9) to enrich the evaluation of alexithymia when opting for a multimethod evaluative approach?

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Reference

Langevin R, Laurent A, Bellehumeur C. (2017). Is it advisable to use the Scored Archetypal Test 9 (SAT.9) to enrich the evaluation of alexithymia when opting for a multimethod evaluative approach?. Annales Médico-Psychologiques. 175(10): 877-881.

Abstract

A multimethod approach is recommended for evaluating alexithymia. Apart from the direct methods such as self-reported questionnaires, there are indirect approaches that make use of projective tests. Of these tests, the quantitative version of the Scored Archetypal Test 9 (SAT.9) of the 9 Element Anthropological Test (AT.9) was already used for the enrichment of the alexithymia evaluation, notably in the symbolization ability deficiency (SAD). However, there has to our knowledge been no recent research done on the appropriateness of the SAT.9 for evaluating alexithymia. The aim of the study undertaken was to determine to what extent the Bermond-Vorst alexithymia questionnaire (BVAQ) is correlated with the SAT.9, and particularly the SAD. The study was conducted with an experimental group composed of substance polyconsumers (n = 25) and a control group (n = 25) of university-level students. All participants took the BVAQ and the SAT.9. The results indicate that the experimental group participants’ scores were significantly superior to the control group’s scores on each of the sub-scales of the BVAQ as well as on their total score. The results also show that the experimental group participants had a larger SAD than the control group members. Lastly, the results highlight significant correlations between the two groups’ BVAQ global scores and the SAD on the SAT.9. This study underscores the appropriateness of using the SAT.9 as a complementary tool for evaluating alexithymia as part of a multi-method approach.

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