The Effect of COVID-Focused Expressive Writing on Symptoms of Depression, Anxiety, and Distress in College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Objective: The coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been associated with increased levels of distress for college students. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of a COVID-focused expressive writing intervention in reducing symptoms of depression, anxiety, and distress. Methods: A total of 169 college students were assigned either to a COVID-focused expressive writing intervention or to a nonwriting control group. All participants completed a 1-month follow-up assessment, and all study procedures were completed online due to COVID-19 restrictions. Depression was measured with the Beck Depression Inventory-II, anxiety was measured with the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and distress was measured with a Likert-scale question that measured distress specifically related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Results indicated that participants in the expressive writing group demonstrated a significant decrease (b = -1.35) in anxiety symptoms whereas participants in the control group did not. None of the participants in either group demonstrated a significant decrease in depression symptoms. Ratings of distress in the expressive writing group were significantly lower (d = -0.51) at the 1-month follow-up when compared to the control group. Discussion: COVID-focused expressive writing is a relatively brief and inexpensive intervention that has been associated with lower symptoms of anxiety and distress in college students. Theoretical implications are discussed. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Social & Clinical Psychology is the property of Guilford Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Parental stress as a mediator between parents' emotion regulation and youth's psychological symptoms during the COVID-19 lockdown: a cross-sectional study

Mental health in families has been affected by COVID-19 stressors. Parental stress and emotion regulation can moderate the emotional effects on their children. This study analyzes the role of parental stress as a mediating variable between parents' emotion regulation and children's symptoms. Participants were 214 parents of youth aged 3-17 years, who completed an online survey providing information about parental variables and symptoms in their children. The results show that parental stress mediates the relationship between parental emotion regulation and children's psychological symptoms. Thus, parents who used cognitive reappraisal strategy less frequently reported more psychological symptoms in their children and higher parental stress. Parents who used expressive suppression more frequently also reported more psychological symptoms in their children and higher parental stress. The present study provides novel information by relating parental psychological variables with psychological variables in youth during a period characterized by the most significant psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2023. Psy, Soc & Educ.

Emotion regulation moderates the impact of state anxiety on psychological well-being in turkish population during the covid-19 pandemic

The current study aimed to examine the extent to which the relationship between state anxiety and psychological well-being was moderated by emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression) during the COVID-19 outbreak. The data set included 520 participants from Turkish university students (282 females, 238 males) aged 18 to 25 (Mage = 21,04 years, SD = 1,59). The study was conducted utilizing a web-based cross-sectional research design. The self-reported questionnaires were administered to the participants via Google Forms with a socio-demographic information sheet. The snowball sampling strategy was employed. The findings showed significant relationships among state anxiety, emotion regulation strategies, and psychological well-being. More importantly, emotion regulation strategies moderated the relationship between state anxiety and psychological well-being. The negative relationship between state anxiety and psychological well-being appeared to increase if individuals utilized low levels of cognitive reappraisal and high levels of expressive suppression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Online person-centered expressive arts for helping professionals during COVID-19: A mixed-methods case study exploring professional stress and resilience

This dissertation research applied the Person-Centered Expressive Arts (PCEA) process developed by Natalie Rogers, Ph.D. (N. Rogers, 1993, 2011) to an online therapeutic setting for helping professionals who self-reported an increase in professional stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research explored the mental health needs of helping professionals, their resilience, PCEA as a therapeutic modality, and the facilitation of PCEA in an online environment. There was one primary research question and three sub-questions. The primary research question was, "What are the lived experiences of helping professionals who have self-reported an increase in professional stress during the COVID-19 pandemic when engaged in the PCEA process?" Sub-questions related to perceptions of professional stress, any impacts of PCEA on resilience, and perceptions of the online therapeutic environment. This mixed-methods research used case study and quantitative pre- and post-study measures to explore participants' professional quality of life (Pool, Stamm, 2009) and resilience (5x5RS, DeSimone et al., 2017b). PCEA sessions included meditation, sounding, drawing, painting, clay, collage, movement, writing, and verbal processing. Six helping professionals were identified through an email networking recruitment strategy. Participation included two semi-structured interviews (pre- and post-study), three sessions of online PCEA processes, completion of the pre- and post-study measures, and an optional debriefing meeting for participants to confirm the interpretation of data. All interviews and PCEA sessions were held separately with each participant through Zoom videoconferencing. This research included no group meetings. Thematic analysis and cross-case synthesis were used to analyze the research data. Cross-case findings were that participants: (1) experienced personal growth and a deeper connection with the self, (2) felt more deeply connected with others, (3) found that the person-centered approach was beneficial and led to a sense of safety and relational creativity, (4) experienced a deeper connection with everyday creativity, and (5) experienced a connection with spirituality through engagement in the PCEA process (n = 4). This research explored professional stress, resilience, and everyday creativity among helping professionals during three sessions of online PCEA processes. It suggests that PCEA is a valuable therapeutic modality to address the stressors of the COVID-19 pandemic and serves as an uplifting, engaging, and empowering practice that can be used to benefit individuals, groups, and communities. Keywords: case study, COVID-19 pandemic, cross-case synthesis, everyday creativity, helping professionals, mixed-methods, online therapeutic services, Person-Centered Expressive Arts, resilience, spirituality, stress, thematic analysis. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Family functioning, emotion regulation and stress during COVID-19 lockdown among Mexican adolescents

COVID-19 lockdown has brought multiple changes in the lives of adolescents. In this context, the objective of the present research was to examine the role of emotion regulation, including five adaptive strategies (mindfulness, reappraisal, acceptance, problem solving, and distraction) as parallel mediators of the effects of family functioning on stress among Mexican teenagers. A total of 788 adolescents participated in this study. Results confirmed the parallel mediation model showing that family functioning can reduce stress experienced by adolescents by positively influencing the strategies of mindfulness, reappraisal, problem solving, and distraction. In conclusion, it was possible to confirm for the first time the effects that family functioning has on stress of Mexican adolescents via emotion regulation strategies.

Yo-Yo Machines

Yo-Yo Machines are playful communication devices designed to help people feel socially connected while physically separated. We designed them to reach as many people as possible, both to make a positive impact during the COVID-19 pandemic and to assess a self-build approach to circulating research products and the appeal of peripheral and expressive communication devices. A portfolio of four distinct designs, based on over 30 years of research, were made available for people to make by following simple online instructions (yoyomachines.io). Each involves connecting a pair of identical devices over the internet to allow simple communication at a distance. This paper describes our motivation for the project, previous work in the area, the design of the devices, supporting website and publicity, and how users have made and used Yo-Yo Machines. Finally, we reflect on what we learned about peripheral and expressive communication devices and implications for the self-build approach.

Preliminary data on the development of emotion vocabulary in typically developing children (5-13 years) using an experimental psycholinguistic measure.

Introduction: Vocabulary of emotion is integral to emotional development and emotional intelligence is associated with improved mental health outcomes. Many language disordered groups experience emotional difficulties; Developmental Language Disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and autism. However, (as in the case of autism) research tends to focus on assessing recognition of emotional states, rather than exploring labeling skills. Where labeling is assessed, measures have focused on early-acquired vocabulary (happy, sad, angry) or self/parent reporting. To date, no objective assessment has been made of vocabulary of emotion across childhood. Methods: This study uses an experimental psycholinguistic measure, The Emotion Vocabulary: Expressive and Receptive ability measure (EVER) which includes two tasks (receptive vocabulary and word generation/expressive vocabulary). This measure has capacity to demonstrate vocabulary growth across age groups. 171 participants (5.0-13.11 years) completed The EVER Measure, alongside two closely matched standardized measures of basic language: BPVS (receptive vocabulary task) and CELF (word-association task). Assessments were completed online and en vivo (COVID testing restrictions dependent). Results: As predicted, children's accuracy increased on both receptive and expressive emotion vocabulary tasks, in line with age at time of testing. EVER scores were significantly predicted by age and correlated with matched basic language scores. Secondary analysis provided preliminary findings on age of acquisition for specific emotion vocabulary items. Discussion: The findings consequently demonstrate proof of concept for the use of The EVER Measure in assessing emotional vocabulary across childhood. This study provides important preliminary data on generating and recognizing emotion labels across typical child development. Critically, it extends current knowledge on emotion vocabulary acquisition into middle childhood, where linguistic ability is relatively mature. As such, findings have implications for research with potential clinical application in the assessment of older children, with either language or emotional differences or both. Findings demonstrate the need for a standardized tool, and its potential application in research and clinical practice is explored. A large-scale study offering proof of concept and reliability of The EVER Measure is indicated.

Anti-counterfeiting advertisements for luxury brands in the post pandemic era: Roles of message type, visual presentation mode, and self-construal

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in the demand for counterfeit luxury products, and the black market is expected to grow continuously in the post pandemic era. The present research aimed to examine how verbal and visual aspects of anti-counterfeiting advertising affect the purchase of counterfeit luxury brands. For the verbal element, we included two types of anti-counterfeiting messages: value-expressive and social-adjustive. For the visual element, two modes of visual presentation were compared;participants were presented either with images of counterfeit products only, or with images of both counterfeit and genuine products. The results from two experiments demonstrated that both variables interacted with consumers' self-construal in determining the effects of anti-counterfeiting advertising. Participants with independent self-construal expressed a lower intention to purchase counterfeit luxury products when a value-expressive message was used or when only an image of the counterfeit was included. In contrast, participants with interdependent self-construal exhibited a lower purchase intention when a social-adjustive message was utilized or when images of both the counterfeit and authentic brands were presented side-by-side. Moreover, anti-counterfeiting messages influenced participants' purchase intentions through the perceptions of social-adjustive and value-expressive benefits, whereas the effect of presentation mode was mediated by the fluency experienced by the participants when processing the advertisement. Our research findings contribute theoretically to the literature on social motives, evaluation mode, comparative advertising, and self-construal, and will assist practitioners in developing effective communication strategies to reduce the consumption of counterfeit luxury brands. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd

Expressiveness and psychic internality: The use of online diaries in the contemporary forms of life

The idea of psychic internality/interiority has always been a problem for Psychology as a science. The specific purpose of this chapter is to develop (1) a brief questioning about the meanings of privacy interiorized in the grammars of socio-historical and cultural perspectives of Psychology;(2) an approach to Wittgenstein's linguistic pragmatism critiques of language games from internality to the psychological individual;and (3) a discussion based on a research instrument for online diaries, about another grammar of a dialogical nature, which would dispense the spatialization of the psyche to talk about subjective agentivity and its psychic processes in the face of the alterity of the life of intersubjective relationship. Thus, we hope to sensitize the readers about the effects of internality spatialized in the current ultra-individualistic ways of life and to encourage them to pay attention to how dialogical ethics, anchored in the ideal of democratic utopias, can illuminate the very way we conceive, describe, and produce knowledge about the subjective and creative dimensions of life. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Resilient Warriors: An Expressive Arts-Based Resiliency Program to Promote Rural Upper Elementary Students' Resilience and Well-Being

A considerable gap exists between rural and urban children in their mental health outcomes that has continued to grow during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the critical role of school counselors in addressing this gap, we tested the effectiveness of a 10-week, expressive arts-based resiliency program, Resilient Warriors, with 46 rural elementary students. Results revealed a significant increase in students' resilience and well-being posttest scores. We discuss practical implications for school counseling practitioners. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Professional School Counseling is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Testing a new form of expressive writing on wellbeing, physical health, and depression symptomatology

Writing has existed as a form of catharsis and healing for thousands of years but has only been tested experimentally within the last few decades. One of these writing interventions- expressive writing- has shown to have small but consistent effects across various physiological and psychological constructs. However, there have been recent criticisms of the expressive writing paradigm, with researchers questioning if the current prompts open-ended nature leads to confounds in discovering underlying processes of the expressive writing task. Additionally, researchers have criticized utilizing measures that promote a disease model paradigm. Therefore, the current study contributes to the literature on expressive writing by creating a new expressive writing prompt and empirically comparing it to the common expressive writing prompt through quantitative methods. One hundred and fifty-four respondents completed a three-day online survey about their current depressive symptoms, physical health, and wellbeing. Additionally, they completed either an expressive writing or positive expressive writing task for twenty minutes, followed by measures to examine psychological flow and broadened cognition. Results revealed lower depression scores immediately after the three-day positive expressive writing intervention, but not in the expressive writing as normal condition, as well as lowered physical health symptoms in the positive expressive writing condition over the course of treatment. Additionally, broadened cognition immediately after the expressive writing task predicted reduced depression scores in the positive expressive writing group, but not the expressive writing as normal group. However, the lack of long-term psychological gains led to recommendations for future research and working towards alternative methods of expressive writing and brief interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Linguistic Predictors of Psychological Adjustment in Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

COVID-19 broke out in China in December 2019 and rapidly became a worldwide pandemic that demanded an extraordinary response from healthcare workers (HCWs). Studies conducted during the pandemic observed severe depression and PTSD in HCWs. Identifying early predictors of mental health disorders in this population is key to informing effective treatment and prevention. The aim of this study was to investigate the power of language-based variables to predict PTSD and depression symptoms in HCWs. One hundred thirty-five HCWs (mean age = 46.34; SD = 10.96) were randomly assigned to one of two writing conditions: expressive writing (EW n = 73) or neutral writing (NW n = 62) and completed three writing sessions. PTSD and depression symptoms were assessed both pre- and post-writing. LIWC was used to analyze linguistic markers of four trauma-related variables (cognitive elaboration, emotional elaboration, perceived threat to life, and self-immersed processing). Changes in PTSD and depression were regressed onto the linguistic markers in hierarchical multiple regression models. The EW group displayed greater changes on the psychological measures and in terms of narrative categories deployed than the NW group. Changes in PTSD symptoms were predicted by cognitive elaboration, emotional elaboration, and perceived threat to life; changes in depression symptoms were predicted by self-immersed processing and cognitive elaboration. Linguistic markers can facilitate the early identification of vulnerability to mental disorders in HCWs involved in public health emergencies. We discuss the clinical implications of these findings.

Learning Music Theory Through Musical Theatre During a Pandemic

This research focuses on the application of Musical Theatre in the subject of Music Theory, in specialized Music Education. The issue to be explored is related to the development of new creative approaches in Music Theory Education, showing how Musical Theatre, through song, movement and performance, can contribute, as a pedagogic resource, to the implementation of strategies to promote musical, conceptual, attitudinal and motivation skills in musical learning. The methodology applied was action research, taking a first-grade Music Theory class as the target population with five students, aged between ten and twelve years, at the Castelo Branco Regional Conservatory (CRCB), Proença-a-Nova branch, during the 2019/2020 school year, and lasted 10 sessions. Surveys through questionnaires (applied at the beginning and end of the research), reflective summaries of classes and observation grids were used as research instruments. According to the evidence presented in the course of the study, the strategies adopted reveal a significant improvement in students' musical skills and knowledge, despite the limitations caused by Covid-19, positively contributing to their motivation and interest in the exploitation of musical content. In this sense, we conclude that the results obtained throughout the study reveal that the practical application of Musical Theatre in Music Theory classes can be a very significant pedagogical resource, substantially improving knowledge acquisition, interest and motivation for musical learning. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

The Emotion Regulation Questionnaire: Psychometric Properties and Prediction of Posttraumatic Consequences during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Chilean Adults.

The Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) is widely used to assess the use of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression strategies to regulate negative emotions. The present study evaluates the psychometric properties, reliability and validity of a Chilean adaptation of the ERQ in a large sample of 1543 participants aged between 18 and 87 (38% male, 62% female). The results of the confirmatory factor analysis showed the expected two-factor structure and factorial invariance in relation to gender. Results also indicated adequate internal consistency, test-retest reliability, convergent and predictive validity in predicting posttraumatic stress symptoms and posttraumatic growth six months after the first measurement in a subsample of students exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic. The use of reappraisal was positively associated with general well-being, whereas the use of suppression was positively associated with depressive symptomatology. In terms of posttraumatic consequences, the use of reappraisal was negatively associated with posttraumatic symptomatology and positively associated with posttraumatic growth six months later; in turn, suppression was positively associated with posttraumatic symptomatology and negatively associated with posttraumatic growth six months later. This study demonstrates that the ERQ is a valid and reliable instrument to measure emotional regulation strategies in Chilean adults.

(Im)politeness on Facebook during the Covid-19 pandemic

Digital discourse has emerged as a substantial focus of interest within the pragmatic field. Specifically, (im)politeness practices on social media have increasingly received scholarly attention in the last decade (Tagg, Caroline, Philip Seargeant & Amy Aisha Brown. 2017. Taking offence on social media. Conviviality and conviviality and communication on Facebook. Switzerland: Springer Nature, Palgrave McMillan;Tsoumou, Jean Mathieu. 2020. Analyzing speech acts in politically related Facebook communication. Journal of Pragmatics 167. 80–97). However, research combining COVID-19, Facebook and (im)politeness in a politically polarizing context is still scarce. This paper is an analysis of (im)politeness in Facebook comments posted as reactions to Giuliani's COVID diagnosis. Thus, by combining quantitative and qualitative approaches, the aim of the present paper is twofold: On the one hand, it intends to further our understanding of the manifestation of (im)politeness practices on Facebook through an analysis of reactive comments to Giuliani's Covid-19 diagnosis on BBC news Facebook page. On the other hand, the paper aims to examine how the struggle between impoliteness and politeness divides Facebook users between sympathizers and detractors of the patient. Through a metadiscursive analysis, the identified (im)politeness items are distributed in an uneven fashion, with impoliteness-oriented items prevailing as the dominant macro category against politeness-oriented ones. The findings suggest that users employ different strategies to express or intensify (im)politeness, favoring explicit expressions of impoliteness such as redress/agreement, insults, pointed criticisms/complaints, unpalatable questions and/or presuppositions over others like threats.

Effectiveness of online expressive writing in reducing psychological distress among the asymptomatic COVID-19 patients in Fangcang Hospitals: A quasi-experiment study.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the applicability and effectiveness of an online format of expressive writing (EW) in reducing psychological distress among the asymptomatic COVID-19 patients in Fangcang Hospitals with a quasi-experiment. Method: Altogether 244 patients were assigned to the EW group(n=122) and the control group(n=122). Besides the routine psychological intervention (broadcast relaxation training at a fixed time) in Fangcang hospitals, The EW group was engaged in 8-day theme-based adaption EW intervention, whereas the control group received no interventions. All the participants were tested with the Brief Profile of Mood States (BPOMS) and Inpatient Mental Health Preliminary Screening Scale(IMHPS) before and after the intervention. After the intervention, the writing quality and intervention satisfaction of the EW group were evaluated by a self-designed writing quality questionnaire and EW satisfaction questionnaire. Results: The results indicated that the EW significantly improved in the BPOMS test, whereas the control group showed no significant change. The IMHPS score in the control group was statistically deteriorated than that before intervention, whereas the EW group showed no significant change. The writing quality was highly correlated with the score change of BPMOS. The overall satisfaction of patients with EW was 81.13%. Conclusion: EW can reduce psychological distress among the asymptomatic COVID-19 patients in Fangcang Hospitals. The higher the quality of writing, the greater the improvement of mood states. As a new form of psychological intervention in Fangcang hospitals with high patient satisfaction, EW has a value of popularization and application.

Online Teaching of Productive Language Skills (PLS) during Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) in EFI Classrooms: A Phenomenological Inquiry

This study aims to explore the experiences of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers in teaching productive skills during emergency distance learning (ERT) and the COVID-19 pandemic and their recommendations for teaching productive skills online. Phenomenological inquiry, which is one of the qualitative designs, was employed to conduct the study. It took place in the 2020-2021 academic year in Turkey. Participants of the study consisted of 16 English as a Foreign Language teachers. Convenience sampling was executed to designate the study participants. The main data collection tool was semi-structured interview questions and data was collected via individual interviews, a focus group interview and via form by e-mail. Content analysis was administered in the data analysis process. Study results explored teachers mostly agreed on the fact that online education had its advantages such as easy materials access and online tools and some disadvantages such as lack of interaction, lack of scaffolding, internet access problems and learner-related problems. Also, they stated that it was hard to engage learners during the process, so they used games, authentic materials, videos, discussions and web 2.0 tools to provide engagement. Teachers discovered new online platforms and tools to make their lessons efficient. They mostly suggested changing the assessment style, making participation compulsory and conducting activities that can engage learners in the learning-teaching process. Consequently, it was seen that teaching productive skills in ERT was challenging in terms of student participation, however, teachers found solutions to it and they thought it was not a bad idea to teach productive skills online, especially speaking. Accordingly, hybrid education can be considered in the future in teaching English and teaching productive skills.

Predictors of Adolescent Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic in a Community Sample of Hispanic and Latinx Youth: Expressive Suppression and Social Support.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented disruptions in the daily lives and mental health of adolescents. Less attention has been given to the psychosocial resources that may mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on adolescent mental health, particularly among minoritized populations. In the present study, 259 youth (aged 11-18) were recruited from a community center for integrated prevention and intervention services in a predominantly Latinx and Hispanic community. Youth completed questionnaires about the impact COVID-19 has had on their lives, psychosocial resources (humor, optimism, emotion regulation, social support), and psychiatric symptoms (depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, sleep disturbances, aggression). After accounting for age, sex, and exposure to early life adversity, higher reported COVID-19 impact was associated with more depressive symptoms, b = 6.37 (SE = 1.67), 95% CI [3.08, 9.66], p < 0.001, more anxiety symptoms, b = 9.97 (SE = 1.63), 95% CI [6.75, 13.18], p < 0.001, and more sleep disturbances, b = 1.24 (SE = 0.34), 95% CI [0.57, 1.91], p < 0.001. Youth that reported infrequent expressive suppression and the lowest scores on giving social support were at the greatest risk for aggressive behavior in the context of high COVID-19 impact, ps < 0.007. Increasing emotion regulation skills, such as expressive suppression, and opportunities to give social support may promote resilience among high risk youth in the context of this ongoing community stressor.

The Big Lie: Expressive Responding and Misperceptions in the United States

Misinformation about events surrounding the 2020 election and the COVID-19 pandemic pose an existential threat to American democracy and public health. Public opinion surveys reveal that high percentages of Republicans indicate that they endorse some aspects of mistaken beliefs surrounding election fraud in the 2020 election. Still, understanding how to measure the endorsement of misperceptions is critical for understanding the threat at hand. Are high levels of mistaken beliefs genuinely held, or are they partially a function of expressive responding? I address this question through a set of survey experiments encouraging accuracy-oriented processing among the general public. Using well-powered surveys of Republicans and Independents, I find that treatments designed to encourage more accurate responses are ineffective in reducing the endorsement of partisan electoral and public health misperceptions and can in some cases even backfire. These findings suggest that support for these misperceptions is genuinely held.

E-counseling-based Expressive Writing Therapy Platform for Overcoming Student Mental Health Problems

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted increasing mental health problems in Indonesia. People were haunted by anxiety, fear, and mental stress resulting from isolation activities, as well as physical restrictions and conditions of uncertainty. Even data before the pandemic showed that mental health problems were a task that had not been entirely resolved, both in Indonesia nationally and internationally. According to data from the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia, in 2016, there were 1,800 data on suicides in one year. This is equivalent to a total of 5 people who commit suicide in one day. Even sadder, it is known that 47.7% of suicide victims are aged 10 to 39 years, namely teenagers and productive age, including university students. Therefore, this study aims to design an e-counseling-based expressive writing therapy platform for college students. The expressive writing therapy method was chosen because it has a positive effect on depressive symptoms. The final result of this research is a system design in the form of a UML diagram that describes the actors, process flows, and system components, and also the prototype of the system. © 2022 Institute of Advanced Engineering and Science (IAES).