Writing Practice Prescription

by

Ellen Taliaferro, MD

The May issue of the journal of psychology publishes an article that looks at expressive writing as a preventive tool.[1] Many studies have demonstrated a benefit on the use of expressive writing” regarding a past or ongoing stressful experience results in a wide range of beneficial effects, including physical health and cognitive functioning.”

This article, Effects of expressive writing on standardized graduate entrance exam performance and physical health functioning, differs in that it looks forward and not backwards. The authors looked at the impact of expressive writing to prepare for a stressful examination.

Findings? The students who used expressive writing to prep for the upcoming examination produced a mean exam score significantly higher (19 percentile points) than the control group of students. Of note, the students in the experimental group who wrote on 3 or more occasions experienced the greatest benefits.

Click here to see the article abstract.

[1] J Psychol. 2009 May;143(3):279-92.