Writing about emotions versus goals: Effects on hostility and medical care utilization moderated by emotional approach coping processes.
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| Title: | Writing about emotions versus goals: Effects on hostility and medical care utilization moderated by emotional approach coping processes. |
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| Authors: | Austenfeld, Jennifer L. (AUTHOR), Stanton, Annette L. (AUTHOR) |
| Source: | British Journal of Health Psychology. Feb2008, Vol. 13 Issue 1, p35-38. 4p. 1 Graph. |
| Subjects: | Writing & psychology, Human behavior, Self-disclosure, Nonverbal communication, Self-expression, Expressive behavior, Goal (Psychology), Graphotherapy |
| Abstract: | Objectives. The study compared emotionally disclosive writing and writing about goals as the 'best possible self' to a control condition and evaluated coping through emotional processing (EP) and expression (EE) as moderators of effects at 1-month follow-up. Method. Undergraduates (N = 63) were randomly assigned to emotional disclosure (EMO), best possible self (BPS), or a control condition (CTL). Outcomes were hostility, medical visits, depressive symptoms, physical symptoms, and blood pressure. Results. At 1 month, hostility decreased in high-EP participants in EMO relative to BPS and decreased in low-EP participants in BPS relative to EMO. Low-EP participants had fewer medical visits in BPS, whereas high-EP participants had more visits in BPS relative to other conditions. Conclusions. Benefits may accrue when the expressive task is matched to the individual's preferred coping strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of British Journal of Health Psychology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection |
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| Abstract: | Objectives. The study compared emotionally disclosive writing and writing about goals as the 'best possible self' to a control condition and evaluated coping through emotional processing (EP) and expression (EE) as moderators of effects at 1-month follow-up. Method. Undergraduates (N = 63) were randomly assigned to emotional disclosure (EMO), best possible self (BPS), or a control condition (CTL). Outcomes were hostility, medical visits, depressive symptoms, physical symptoms, and blood pressure. Results. At 1 month, hostility decreased in high-EP participants in EMO relative to BPS and decreased in low-EP participants in BPS relative to EMO. Low-EP participants had fewer medical visits in BPS, whereas high-EP participants had more visits in BPS relative to other conditions. Conclusions. Benefits may accrue when the expressive task is matched to the individual's preferred coping strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 1359107X |
| DOI: | 10.1348/135910707X250857 |
