Expressive Writing and Marital Satisfaction: A Writing Sample Analysis

• Published date: 01 April 2020
• Author: Scot M. Allgood,Ryan B. Seedall,Rachel B. Williams
• Date: 01 April 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12416

S M. A, R B. S,  R B. WUtah State University

Expressive Writing and Marital Satisfaction:

A Writing Sample Analysis

Objective: To examine the relationship between

marital satisfaction and two linguistic elements

in the context of writing: use of personal pro-

nouns and affective language.

Background: Expressive writing (EW) is an

effective way of identifying and processing

thoughts and emotions. It also promotes indi-

vidual, physical, and psychological health.

However, much less literature has examined

the relationship between EW and relationship

health.

Method: We used the Linguistic Inquiry and

Word Count (LIWC2007) to examine the writing

of 78 married, heterosexual couples who were

instructed to write freely on a topic they felt

strongly about in their relationship. Multilevel

modeling within SPSS was used to examine our

research questions.

Results: Findings suggest a relationship

between marital satisfaction and use of (a)

rst-person plural pronouns (we,us,our,ours),

(b) positive affective language, and (c) linguistic

indicators of anger when writing about one’s

relationship.

Conclusion: The results providefurther impetus

for examining relationship processes within an

EW framework and, in particular, for examining

the merits of EW as a potential intervention for

couples.

Department of Human Development and Family Stud-

ies, Utah State University, 6435 Old Main, Logan, UT

84322-6435 (rbseedall@gmail.com).

Key Words: affective language, couples, expressive writing,

marital satisfaction, pronoun use.

Implications: Findings suggest that expressive

writing may be a potentially important indicator

of mutuality (we-ness), the ability to up-regulate

positive emotion, and negative affective pro-

cesses (i.e., anger).

Writing provides a symbolic way of expressing

thoughts and emotions. Through writing, indi-

viduals provide a window into their cognitive

and emotional processes as well as their personal

identity (Pennebaker, Chung, Ireland, Gonzales,

& Booth, 2007). This has led researchers and

therapists to explore ways that expressive writ-

ing (EW) may help foster healthy coping (Lep-

ore & Smyth, 2002). Expressive writing (EW)

refers to the process of using writing to express

profound thoughts and emotions in a meaningful

way to explore deeply personal ideas and expe-

riences (Lepore & Smyth, 2002; Pennebaker,

1997).

EW may help people process emotions and

experiences that are initially difcult to express

verbally. Indeed, researchers have consistently

found that writing about deep and personal

issues can promote positive individual and psy-

chological health (for a review, see Pennebaker

& Chung, 2011). In addition, EW has been

identied as a useful supplement to psychother-

apy in that it can promote valuable change in

terms of self-monitoring, increased awareness,

and emotional processing (Cummings, Hayes,

Saint, & Park, 2014). These established bene-

ts for individuals aside, relatively few articles

have addressed the relation between writing and

relationship health. Given the benets of writ-

ing for psychotherapy with individuals, writing

380Family Relations 69 (April 2020): 380–391

DOI:10.1111/fare.12416