Writing and Well-Being: Positive Expressive Writing as a Strategy for Managing Anxiety in College Students

Abstract

Introduction: The college population faces academic and personal demands that generate stress, anxiety, and emotional distress, with high prevalence rates in Mexico. Objective: This essay aims to argue for the relevance of positive expressive writing (PEW) as a preventive strategy for emotional distress among college students. Development: To this end, it reviews its historical foundations, its main techniques, and the available empirical evidence in college and clinical populations. It also discusses its limitations and the factors that moderate its effectiveness. The evidence indicates that PEW produces consistent effects on subjective well-being and positive affect, although its results on clinical variables such as anxiety are less uniform. Conclusions: It is concluded that PEW represents a viable complement within a continuum of university mental health services, useful for promoting well-being and socio-emotional development, if it is not presented as a substitute for specialized psychological care.