An everyday activity as a treatment for depression: The benefits of expressive writing for people diagnosed with major depressive disorder

JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS

卷:150

Article

Krpan, Katherine M.¹  Kross, Ethan¹  Berman, Marc G.²  Deldin, Patricia J.¹  Askren, Mary K.³  Jonides, John¹ 

[1] Univ Michigan, Dept Psychol, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 USA

[2] Univ S Carolina, Dept Psychol, Columbia, SC 29208 USA

[3] Univ Washington, Dept Radiol, Integrated Brain Imaging Ctr, Seattle, WA 98195 USA

关键词: Expressive writing;    Major depressive disorder;    Intervention;    Written emotional disclosure;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.jad.2013.05.065

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Background: The benefits of expressive writing have been well documented among several populations, but particularly among those who report feelings of dysphoria. It is not known, however, if those diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) would also benefit from expressive writing. Methods: Forty people diagnosed with current MDD by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV participated in the study. On day 1 of testing, participants completed a series of questionnaires and cognitive tasks. Participants were then randomly assigned to either an expressive writing condition in which they wrote for 20 min over three consecutive clays about their deepest thoughts and feelings surrounding an emotional event (n=20), or to a control condition (n=20) in which they wrote about non emotional daily events each day. On day 5 of testing, participants completed another series of questionnaires and cognitive measures. These measures were repeated again 4 weeks later. Results: People diagnosed with MOD in the expressive writing condition showed significant decreases in depression scores (Beck Depression Inventory and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scores) immediately after the experimental manipulation (Day 5). These benefits persisted at the 4-week follow-up. Limitations: Self-selected sample. Conclusions: This is the first study to demonstrate the efficacy of expressive wilting among people formally diagnosed with current MDD. These data suggest that expressive writing may be a useful supplement to existing interventions for depression. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

Free