The influence of alexithymia on risk behavior of college students / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To explore the current situation of college students′ risk behavior and its relationship with alexithymia.Methods:A total of 992 college students from two colleges in Jiangxi Province were investigated with evaluation scale for risk behaviors of teenagers and Toronto alexithymia scale. SPSS 17.0 software was used for descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and regression analysis.Results:Evaluation scale for risk behaviors showed that 15.2% of college students had at least one risk behavior factor scored more than 3, and 1.0% had at least one factor scored more than 4. The scores of bad habits and extroversion behavior question of boys((1.72±0.50), (1.61±0.56)) were significantly higher than those of girls ((1.66±0.38), (1.45±0.40), t=2.205, P=0.028, t=5.020, P<0.01), and the scores of introversion behavior question and academic maladjustment of girls ((2.13±0.56), (2.51±0.53)) were significantly higher than those of boys ((1.97±0.62), (2.39±0.63), t=-4.157, P<0.01, t=-3.282, P=0.001). The four factors of risk behaviors were positively correlated with each other (0.497-0.673), and the risk behaviors of college students were clustered. There were significant differences in the total score of risk behaviors ((2.28±0.43), (1.99±0.37), (1.71±0.36)), introversion behavior question ((2.60±0.54), (2.17±0.49), (1.80±0.50)), bad habits ((1.95±0.49), (1.73±0.38), (1.54±0.36)), academic maladjustment ((2.82±0.52), (2.57±0.50), (2.25±0.54)) and extroversion behavior question ((1.72±0.56), (1.57±0.46), (1.37±0.38)) in alexithymia group, possible alexithymia group and non alexithymia group( F=157.252, 172.027, 75.654, 85.424, 45.604, all P<0.01). Multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that alexithymia could predict college students′ risk behaviors. Conclusion:Taking effective measures to reduce the level of alexithymia can reduce the occurrence of risk behaviors of college students.