You suspect dissociation of affect in a patient. Before revealing the answer, decide how you would assess for this.

Note the manner in which emotionally significant or traumatic material is described, listening for a curiously calm, detached, or almost clinical tone that seems out of keeping with the content. Compare this against the patient's emotional responsiveness to other, unrelated topics discussed in the same interview, since intact responsiveness elsewhere, with the reduced feeling confined to specific charged content, points toward dissociation of affect rather than a pervasive reduction. Ask directly whether the person notices this gap themselves, and whether the detachment feels automatic and involuntary rather than a deliberate choice to appear composed. Consider the broader context, since this often arises specifically in relation to traumatic or overwhelming material and may occur alongside other dissociative disturbances of the sense of self.