Toronto Alexithymia Scale [TAS-20]

Description

The Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) is one of the most widely used psychometric instruments for the assessment of alexithymia. It consists of 20 items and was developed in 1994 by Bagby, Parker, and Taylor. Alexithymia refers to difficulty identifying and describing emotions, together with a tendency to minimize emotional experiences and focus attention on external events.

Purpose

The main purpose of the TAS-20 is to assess the extent to which an individual experiences difficulty recognizing, experiencing, and describing emotions, particularly when communicating emotional states to others.

Dimensions

The TAS-20 includes three main subscales:

  • Difficulty Identifying Feelings (DIF): assesses difficulty recognizing and distinguishing emotional states.
  • Difficulty Describing Feelings (DDF): evaluates difficulty verbally describing emotions.
  • Externally-Oriented Thinking (EOT): assesses the tendency to focus attention on external events rather than on internal emotional experiences.

Scoring

The 20 items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale, where:

  • 1 = Strongly disagree
  • 5 = Strongly agree

Items 4, 5, 10, 18, and 19 are reverse-scored. The total alexithymia score is calculated by summing responses across all 20 items, while separate subscale scores can also be calculated.

The total score is interpreted using the following cut-off values:

  • ≤ 51: non-alexithymia
  • 52–60: possible alexithymia
  • ≥ 61: alexithymia

Reliability and Validity

The TAS-20 demonstrates good internal consistency, with Cronbach’s α = 0.81, and satisfactory test–retest reliability (0.77, p < 0.01). According to the source material, it has been used across male and female, clinical and non-clinical samples, as well as across different age groups.

The Greek adaptation is attributed to Anagnostopoulou and Kiodeoglou.

Applications

The TAS-20 may be used in clinical psychology, health psychology, counseling, and research settings, particularly in studies concerning emotional awareness, emotion identification and expression, and the relationship between alexithymia and other psychological variables.

Its concise format, clear scoring system, and documented reliability make it suitable for systematic assessment of alexithymia across a wide range of populations.

References

Bagby, R. M., Parker, J. D. A., & Taylor, G. J. (1994). Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20).

Greek adaptation: Anagnostopoulou and Kiodeoglou.