Abstract
Background: Expressive writing exercises are associated with psychological benefits for LGBTQ + adults processing sexual minority stressors, but the processes through which this occurs remain unclear.
Methods: A discovery-oriented task analysis was conducted on emotion-focused expressive writing responses about troubling heterosexist experiences. Eighteen cases were analyzed in total.
Results: The analyses produced a four-stage model that describes the processes of resolving distress related to heterosexism.
Conclusion: Results provide guidance for LGBTQ + affirmative mental health practitioners by naming the processes that clients may experience on the pathway to healing and identifying common obstacles to progress that clients may exhibit.
Conflict of interests
The authors have no funding sources or conflicts of interest to declare.