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 pronouns and affective language. Background Expressive writing (EW) is an effective way of identifying and processing thoughts and emotions. It also promotes individual, 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) first-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 provide further impetus for examining relationship processes within an EW framework and, in particular, for examining the merits of EW as a potential intervention for couples. 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 processes (i.e., anger).