Mentalization in Asylum Seekers with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Massimiliano Aragona (), Marcella Cavallo, Federica Ferrari, Giovanna Laurendi and Gianluca Nicolella
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Massimiliano Aragona: National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP), 00153 Rome, Italy
Marcella Cavallo: National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP), 00153 Rome, Italy
Federica Ferrari: National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP), 00153 Rome, Italy
Giovanna Laurendi: National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP), 00153 Rome, Italy
Gianluca Nicolella: National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP), 00153 Rome, Italy

IJERPH, 2025, vol. 22, issue 9, 1-8

Abstract: This study explores the relationship between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the two major dimensions of mentalization (self and other-oriented) in asylum seekers resettled in Italy. It is important because it is the first study addressing the role of mentalization in asylum seekers with PTSD. Twenty asylum seekers scoring above the cut-off for the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) were contrasted to twenty asylum seekers without PTSD on mentalization and somatization. The Certainty About Mental States Questionnaire (CAMSQ) and the Bradford Somatic Inventory (BSI-21) were used to assess mentalization and somatization, respectively. Pearson correlations and multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the overall association between variables. Asylum seekers with PTSD had significantly higher scores than those without PTSD on somatization ( p = 0.03), and significantly lower scores on self-oriented mentalization ( p < 0.05) than those without PTSD. These results show that asylum seekers with PTSD have reduced self-oriented mentalizing abilities, while the other-oriented component of mentalization appears less involved. This study shows that mentalization deserves more research for the possibly crucial role of reduced self-oriented mentalization in asylum seekers’ suffering. If these findings are confirmed by future studies, they could be used to tailor interventions for asylum seekers and refugees with PTSD.

Keywords: mentalization; Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); refugees; somatization; alexithymia; empathy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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