Alexithymia is a construct that has attracted considerable research for people
without learning disabilities. People with alexithymia have difficulties recognizing
and describing emotions and have an externally oriented cognitive style. Alexithymia
has been closely associated with a variety of mental health and somatic problems.
However, the construct of alexithymia has not been considered in respect to people
with learning disabilities. This article identifies parallels between the concept of
alexithymia and the emotion recognition difficulties and external cognitive styles
that have been identified in people with learning disabilities. The article further
identifies that many developmental factors considered important in the aetiology of
alexithymia are significantly present in the lives of people with learning
disabilities and that the association between alexithymia and mental health
identified in other populations may also be important for people with learning
disabilities. We conclude that there is a strong argument that alexithymia should be
a focus of further research for people with learning disabilities.
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