The effect of expressive writing on sexual risk behavior among college women

Abstract

Objective: The current study tested an expressive writing intervention aimed at reducing alcohol use and sexual risk behavior among college women that consume alcohol. Methods: A 2 X 2 mixed between- within-subjects experimental design was utilized to test the effect of expressive writing on alcohol use and sexual risk behavior over time among college women that drink. Study participants completed baseline assessments of alcohol use and sexual risk behavior and were randomly assigned to either a control writing condition (first day of college) or an expressive writing condition (negative alcohol-related event). Participants completed baseline assessments 30 days later. Data for this study were collected in the Fall 2017 semester. Results: A significant interaction effect was found for writing condition over time on sexual risk behavior. Conclusion: Findings provide preliminary support for the use of expressive writing as mechanism to reduce sexual risk behavior among college women that consume alcohol.

Keywords:

• Alcohol use
• college women
• expressive writing
• sexual risk behavior

Compliance with ethical standards

Ethical approval

The current study was reviewed and approved by the IRB at Mercy College in 2016 (Protocol Num. 16-12). Ongoing review was approved in 2017 and 2018.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all study participants prior to the start of the study.

Role of funding source

This project was supported by a Faculty Development Grant at Mercy College. The content of this manuscript is the sole responsibility of the author and does not represent the views of Mercy College.

Contributors

The author created the study design, conducted the statistical analysis, and wrote the draft and final manuscript for journal submission.

Acknowledgments

The author would like to recognize and thank all of the undergraduate research assistants from the STEM Summer Research Academy and Directed Research in Psychology course at Mercy College that provided support for the implementation of this project.

Conflict of interest disclosure

The author has no conflict of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received approval from the Institutional Review Board at Mercy College.