Reducing Anxiety through a Structured Writing Intervention: A Single-System Evaluation

Abstract

A growing body of empirical research indicates that structured writing interventions produce substantial immediate and long-term benefits, including improvements in cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological functioning. To date, many of these studies have used non-clinical college student populations. In contrast, the present study involves a woman suffering anxiety symptoms resulting from domestic violence, and adopts the structured writing intervention as a self-administered adjunct to her clinical treatment. It uses a single-system design with multiple measures to track progress in reducing these symptoms.