Written Emotional Disclosure Paradigm: Effects on Posttraumatic Stress Symtoms and Posttraumatic Growth among Spouses of Cancer Patients

The aim of this study was to test the effects of written emotional disclosure paradigm which is an pro-per intervention method for traumatic situations on posttraumatic stress symptoms and posttraumatic growth among spouses of cancer patients. Method: A total of 50 spouses (35 women, 15 men) of patients who are within more than 6 months of cancer diagnosis and admitted Uluda University Faculty of Medicine Medical Oncology Department were included in this study. Participants age ranged from 37 to 70 (M=53.66, SD=7.69). Participants were randomly assigned to one of the three conditions to write during 15-min sessions in 4 consecutive days: positive, negative and negative + positive (mixed) written emotional disclosure. Sociodemographic Information Form; before the first writing session, after the fourth writing session and 1 month later Impact of Event Scale-Revised and Posttraumatic Growth Inventory were administered to all participants. Results: Results of the study showed that written emotional disclosure had no significant effect on traumatic symptoms and posttraumatic growth. However, there was a time-dependent increase on posttraumatic growth total score and 'changes in relationship with others' and 'changes in philosophy of life subscales from pre-writing to post-writing. Discussion: The increase observed in posttraumatic growth from prewriting to post-writing suggests that this intervention may be important for preventive health services.