Do Alexithymia and Interoception Predict Depression and are These Relationships Mediated by Coping Styles in Stressful Situations

Depression is a leading mental health issue in our society that affects a substantial number of people worldwide. Individuals with difficulties in identifying and describing emotions (alexithymia) and deficits in bodily awareness (interoception) are at increased risk of depression (Brewer et al., 2021). One possibility is that this is due to these individuals relying on poor coping strategies (Hogeveen & Grafman, 2021). Poor coping styles can predict depressive symptoms, and avoidance-oriented and emotion-oriented coping has been associated with a higher vulnerability to depression (Shishido et al., 2013, Aldao et al., 2009). In this study we want to test if high alexithymia and poor interoception indeed predict depression and whether this is mediated by coping style