Table 2.
Mean (95% confidence interval) scores of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and scores on the sub scales measuring different aspects of alexithymia [Difficulty Identifying Feelings (DIF), Difficulty Describing Feelings (DDF), and Externally Oriented Thinking (EOT)] in non-dancers, amateur dancers, and professional dancers.
| Non-dancers | Amateur dancers | Professional dancers | t | P-valuea | t | P-valueb | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | N = 1668 | N = 577 | N = 20 | ||||
| TAS-20 | 46.6 (46.1–47.0) | 46.3 (45.5–47.1) | 42.1 (37.8–46.4) | –0.57 | 0.568 | –2.00 | 0.046 |
| DIF | 12.6 (12.5–12.8) | 12.5 (12.2–12.8) | 11.0 (9.3–12.7) | –0.70 | 0.486 | –1.87 | 0.062 |
| DDF | 12.7 (12.5–12.9) | 13.2 (12.8–13.5) | 11.6 (9.6–13.6) | 2.02 | 0.044 | –1.11 | 0.269 |
| EOT | 21.2 (21.0–21.4) | 20.6 (20.2–20.9) | 19.5 (17.6–21.4) | –2.77 | 0.006 | –1.70 | 0.088 |
| Women | N = 1678 | N = 1385 | N = 49 | ||||
| TAS-20 | 42.5 (42.0–42.9) | 41.0 (40.5–41.5) | 39.7 (36.9–42.5) | –4.03 | <0.001 | –1.93 | 0.056 |
| DIF | 10.8 (10.6–11.0) | 10.4 (10.2–10.6) | 9.92 (8.89–11.0) | –3.15 | 0.002 | –1.64 | 0.102 |
| DDF | 12.8 (12.6–13.1) | 12.9 (12.6–13.1) | 13.1 (11.8–14.5) | 0.16 | 0.871 | 0.43 | 0.670 |
| EOT | 18.8 (18.6–19.0) | 17.7 (17.5–18.0) | 16.6 (15.4–17.8) | –6.77 | <0.001 | –3.50 | <0.001 |
Mean and 95% CI are adjusted for age and education level.
ANCOVA (adjusting for age and education levels) was used to compare the groups.
aComparison between Non-dancers and Amateur dancers.
bComparison between Non-dancers and Professional dancers.