Abstract A link between interoceptive accuracy, as measured by the heartbeat counting task (HCT), and psychological phenomena like anxiety, alexithymia and depression has been proposed. Previous research using the HCT alongside popular questionnaires—the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-T), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II)—has shown inconsistent results. This inconsistency may stem from publication bias, methodological variations or underpowered stu