Grab a pen? Study says writing thank you notes is good for you

By Stephen Beech

Writing a letter or "thank you" note is good for your health, according to new research.

Positive expressive writing consistently improves mental well-being, say scientists.

But the benefits for psychological health and well-being depend on the particular approach and on individual differences, according to the study published in the journal PLOS One.

Study author Lauren Hoult explained that writing interventions, first explored in research, direct people to write about stressful or negative topics repeatedly over the course of several consecutive days, which often improves mental health in the long run, but risks heightening negative emotions in the moment.

Positive expressive writing, on the other hand, emphasises self-reflection, gratitude, and imagining a hopeful future, benefiting well-being over time without risk.

While previous studies suggest that positive expressive writing can boost health and well-being, no existing reviews have assessed the best ways to administer positive expressive writing interventions.

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To evaluate which techniques have the most health and well-being benefits, the researchers systematically reviewed 51 articles about positive expressive writing interventions published between 1930 and 2023.

All the studies focused on non-clinical adult groups and self-administered interventions, including techniques like “best possible self,” writing about an optimistic future, or writing gratitude letters.

The research team found that across positive expressive writing techniques, psychological and subjective well-being outcomes improved most consistently, including measures of happiness, life satisfaction, and gratitude.

Effects on measures of physical and mental health, such as trait anxiety and depression, varied across people and intervention types.

The researchers emphasized that inconsistencies across studies, such as the duration of the writing protocol, made it "challenging" to compare positive expressive writing interventions.

But Hoult, a senior research assistant at Northumbria University, said: "Our review shows that positive expressive writing techniques consistently benefit well-being and positive affect outcomes, with the strongest benefits observed for gratitude and best possible self-writing exercises."

She added: "Individual differences may play a role in the effectiveness of these interventions."

The researchers said that future studies should measure both health and well-being results, assess individual differences across participants, and use more rigorous methods.