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Cited by 106Grief, Bereavement, and Mental HealthMental Health via WritingDigital Mental Health Interventions

The efficacy of a brief internet-based self-help intervention for the bereaved

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van der Houwen, Karolijne, Schut, Henk, van den Bout, Jan, Stroebe, Margaret, Stroebe, Wolfgang·2010·Behaviour Research and Therapy
DOI 10.1016/j.brat.2009.12.009
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Abstract

Research so far has shown little evidence that written disclosure facilitates recovery from bereavement. There are good reasons to assume that written disclosure may only benefit those bereaved who are at risk for developing problems or who are experiencing significant psychological problems as a result of their loss, and only when appropriate writing instructions are used. Drawing on previous work in the area of post-traumatic stress, a writing intervention was designed to test these assumptions. Bereaved individuals, who were still significantly distressed by their loss, were randomly assigned to the intervention condition (N = 460) or a waiting-list control condition (N = 297). Both groups filled in questionnaires online at baseline, and 3 and 6 months later. The intervention was administered via e-mail immediately after baseline measurement. Results showed that writing decreased feelings of emotional loneliness and increased positive mood, in part through its effect on rumination. However, writing did not affect grief or depressive symptoms. Contrary to expectations, effects did not depend on participants' risk profile or baseline distress level. Implications of these findings are discussed.

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  • In an online intervention where the patient writes a letter to the deceased, the activity alone was efficient in reducing emotional loneliness and increasing positive mood and had an effect on rumination, but no effects were observed on grief and depression symptoms.

    “in studies where an online intervention was carried out in which the patient has to write a letter to the deceased person, the researchers concluded that this activity alone was efficient in reducing emotional loneliness and increasing the state of positive mood, as well as its effect on rumination; however, no effects were observed in terms of grief and depression symptoms (Van der Houwen et al.,”

    From A Self-Applied Multi-Component Psychological Online Intervention Based on UX, for the Prevention of Complicated Grief Disorder in the Mexican Population During the COVID-19 Outbreak: Protocol of a Randomized Clinical Trial (2021) · cites this paper as Van der Houwen et al., 2010

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  • In an internet-based intervention with five structured confrontational writing assignments for bereaved and significantly distressed individuals, writing decreased emotional loneliness and increased positive mood but did not affect grief or depressive symptoms.

    “Nevertheless, in an internet-based intervention comprising five structured confrontational writing assignments, for individuals who experienced the death of a first-degree relative and who were significantly distressed, although writing decreased feelings of emotional loneliness and increased positive mood, writing did not affect grief or depressive symptoms.”

    From Efficacy of internet-based integrated intervention on depression and anxiety symptoms in patients with COVID-19 (2020) · cites this paper as van der Houwen et al., 2010

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  1. de Keijser, J., Boelen, P. A., & van den Bout, J. (1998). Schrijfopdrachten, ther- apeutische rituelen, systeeminterventies, creatieve therapie en andere inter- venties. [Writing assignments, therapeutic rituals, system interventions, creative therapy, and other interventions]. In J. van den Bout, P. A. Boelen, & J. de Keijser (Eds.), Behandelingsstrategiee ¨n bij gecompliceerde rouw en verliesver- werking (pp. 95-113). Houten/Diegem: Bohn Stafleu van Loghum.

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Authors
van der Houwen, K., Schut, H., van den Bout, J., Stroebe, M., & Stroebe, W.
Affiliations
Utrecht University (NL)
ORCID
Venue
Behaviour Research and Therapy
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2010-05
Volume
48
Issue
5
Pages
359-367
ISSN
0005-7967 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.brat.2009.12.009
OpenAlex
W2091171011
Cited by
106
References
56
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 6 · 2012: 3
FWCI
3.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Behaviour Research and Therapy (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health via Writing
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
Keywords
bereavement, grief, writing intervention, expressive writing, online self-help, rumination, emotional loneliness, positive mood, depressive symptoms, grief symptoms, post-traumatic stress, risk profile
MeSH terms
Adaptation, Psychological, Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Bereavement, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Models, Psychological, Therapy, Computer-Assisted, Writing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Treatment Outcome, Telemedicine, Statistics, Nonparametric, Internet, Young Adult

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