Phenomenon of alexithymia in clinical-psychological studies (literature review)

In article the analysis of the references devoted to a phenomenon of alexithymia in the aspect of mental health and psychosomatic disorders is presented. Study of theoretical approaches to formation and development of alexithymia phenomenon allows considering it as one of significant risk factors of development of psychosomatic diseases and determining methods effective in psychological prevention. Position about absence of inambiguity in understanding of this phenomenon is thus accented: discussions about specificity/non-specificity of alexithymia in origin of formation of psychosomatic disorders proceed. The research urgency of alexithymia is determined by modern conditions of the social development connected with an era of digital technologies that assumes considerable absorption of the person in the virtual reality promoting expansion of risk factors of formation of alexithymia.