Writing Your Way to Health?: The Effects of Disclosure in German Students.

In 1986 Pennebaker and Beall published their renowned study on the long-term beneficial health effects of disclosing traumatic events in 4 brief sequential writing sessions. The intent of our study was to replicate the experiments from Pennebaker and Beall (1986), Pennebaker et al. (1988), and Greenberg and Stone (1992) using a German student sample. Additionally, essay variables that point to the emotional processing of events were examined as potential mechanisms of action. Trait measures of personality which could moderate the personal consequences of disclosure were also assessed. In a second study the experimental condition (disclosure) was modified by implementing 'coping' vs. 'helping' instructions as variations of the original condition. Under the coping condition participants were asked to elaborate on what they used to do, continue to do, or could do in the future to better cope with the event. Under the helping condition participants were asked to take on the role of being an adviser and to elaborate on what they would recommend to persons dealing with the given trauma in order to better cope with the event. The expected beneficial effects of disclosure on long-term health could not be corroborated in either the first or the second study. Furthermore, none of the examined essay variables of emotional processing and only one of the personality variables was found to have a moderating influence on the long-term health variables. Nevertheless, substantial reductions in posttraumatic stress symptoms, were found in both experiments. These improvements were significantly related to the essay variables of emotional expression and self-exploration and were particularly pronounced under the activation of prosocial motivation (helping condition). Repeated, albeit brief, expressive writing about personally upsetting or traumatic events resulted in an immediate increase in negative mood but did not lead to long-term positive health consequences in a German student sample. It did, however, promote better processing of stressful or traumatic events, as evidenced by reductions in posttraumatic stress symptoms. The instruction to make recommendations for persons dealing with the same trauma appears to be more helpful than standard disclosure or the modified 'coping' instruction. Overall, expressive writing could be confirmed as a successful method of improving trauma processing. Determining the appropriate setting for disclosure can be seen as an objective of future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Accession Number: 2006-04457-011. Partial author list: First Author & Affiliation: Morris, Lisette; Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany. Release Date: 20060522. Correction Date: 20151116. Publication Type: Book (0200), Edited Book (0280). Format Covered: Print. Document Type: Chapter. ISBN: 1-59454-374-7, Paperback. Language: English. Major Descriptor: Emotional Trauma; Expressed Emotion; Health; Self-Disclosure; Written Communication. Minor Descriptor: Coping Behavior; Emotional States; Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; Symptoms. Classification: Health Psychology & Medicine (3360). Population: Human (10); Male (30); Female (40). Location: Germany. Age Group: Adulthood (18 yrs & older) (300). Intended Audience: Psychology: Professional & Research (PS). Tests & Measures: Pennebaker Physical Symptom Scale; Pennebaker Negative Mood Scale; PTSD Symptom Scale; Complaints Schedule; Generalized Expectancy for Negative Mood Regulation; Self-Concealment Scale DOI: 10.1037/t33121-000; Pennebaker Inventory of Limbic Languidness DOI: 10.1037/t05558-000; Toronto Alexithymia Scale DOI: 10.1037/t10642-000; Impact of Event Scale DOI: 10.1037/t00303-000; Penn State Worry Questionnaire DOI: 10.1037/t01760-000; Positive and Negative Affect Scale DOI: 10.1037/t06070-000; Profile of Mood States Questionnaire; Social Support Questionnaire. Methodology: Empirical Study; Experimental Replication; Longitudinal Study; Quantitative Study. References Available: Y. Page Count: 21.