Effect of life review writing on depressive symptoms in older adults: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Objective: We examined the effects of engaging in the occupation-based intervention of life review through writing on expressed depressive symptoms as measured with the Geriatric Depression Scale in older adults residing in senior residences.

Method: The study design was a randomized controlled trial that took place in four senior residences in New York City. Forty-five participants (23 treatment, 22 wait-list control) ≥ 65 yr old participated in the 8-wk, once-weekly autobiographical writing workshop, Share Your Life Story (Sierpina, 2002).

Results: Depressive symptoms were significantly less prevalent for the treatment group than for the control group after the 8-wk life review program (repeated-measures analysis of variance p = .03).

Conclusion: The results suggest that the Share Your Life Story writing workshop is an effective occupation-based intervention for occupational therapists to use with older adults who reside in senior residences.