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This prospect not only allows the individual the opportunity to relieve themselves of the pressure of the emotional burden, but also the chance to come to terms with the concealment of their secrets. The revelation of a secret allows for the individual to gain new insight or catharsis into their personal undisclosed information. In the article, a new insight refers to the making of a meaning out of the situation, which lead to the formation of the secret. Once the individual developments a since of meaning, they then can begin the process of developing a since of closure, in regards, to the personal situation, which lead to the formation of the secret. Catharsis is used in the article to insinuate the “venting of emotions” (652). Catharsis allows for an individual to opening express themselves in a manner were they can declare their pent-up thoughts and feelings, in regards to the establishment of their secret and begin the process of coming to terms with the confidential issue. In this particular research article the researchers conducted their research “in an effort to disentangle the effects of gaining catharsis from the effects of gaining new insights, which have been blended in previous research that has examined the benefits of revealing emotion and facts surrounding private traumas (662). There is a matter of some controversy, between the two methods of revealing secrets. Researchers agree there is a relationship between health benefits and the burden of keeping a secret. But, the particular research discussed in this article is intended to test whether gaining “new insights into the secret would be the better predictor of feeling positive about the secret at the time of the study”(653), compared to using catharsis as the method of coming to terms with the reasons behind the development of the secret. This particular study consisted of two separate projects conducted by the same researchers. In the first study, undergraduates in a introductory psychology class were “asked to (a) select the most private, personal secret that they had shared with another person, (b) describe to what extent they experienced catharsis and gained new insights into the secret after revealing it, and (c) indicate how they felt when thinking about the secret now” (653). A number of different questions were also asked of them in regards to “how private their secret was to them at the time of the study”(654), “the number of people with whom they shared the secret”(654) and “with whom the shared the secret first”(654). The students recorded their answers using a ”7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (not at all) to 7(extremely)” (654). The sample size of the first group consisted of 137 students who volunteered for the study and who also received some form of extra credit for their participation. Of the 137 volunteers, 92 were men and 45 were women. “Of the participates. 115 were White, 3 were Black, 4 were Asian, 7 were Latino/a, and 6 were classified as other” (134) with the average age of the sample being 20 years old. The second study consisted of 85 participants with an average age of 19 years. 45 of the participants were men and the other 40 were women. “Of the participants, 76 were White, 6 were Black, 2 were Asian, and 1 was classified as other (658). All participates were undergraduates who “were randomly assigned to one of three groups in which they were asked to write about either (a) their secrets while trying to gain new insights into them, (b) their secrets while trying to gain catharsis, or (c) their previous day” (658). It was “predicted that participates who were most able to come to terms with their secrets during their writing would experience the greatest improvement in affect, especially those who tried to gain new insights into their secrets” (658). Before they choose a topic to write about all participates answered questions on a Lickert scale similar to the first group researched. The papers written by the students were individually read by judges who were blind to the experimental conditions, during the reading of the papers the judges counted all the emotional words written in the papers. The results of the first research project assisted the researchers in determining the “privateness of the secret”, the “types of confidants” and the different variable in the primary analyses” (656) and allowed the researchers to measure to what extent a person felt before and after revealing their secret and whether or not they developed any insight or catharsis into the reason behind their secret. The results of the second research project allowed the researchers to develop an understanding of the types of secrets participates were keeping from others and with whom they shared their secrets once they decided to talk about them. The research also allowed the researchers to learn about amount of information that the participate shared with the confidant and to what extent information was revealed about the situation, once the secret holders decided to reveal their secrets to the other person. The research was conducted “in an effort to disentangle the effects of gaining catharsis from effects of gaining new insights” (662), in regards to a persons private issues in life. Study 2 showed coming to terms with personal secrets allowed individuals feel less negative, in regards to their secrets. Study 1 results showed that coming to terms with personal secrets has more positive results then catharsis. In general, the two research studies indicate that there are more positive effects from finding meaning in the secrets and the situations that led up to them, then just attempting to overcome the situation by venting about the secrets. The researchers are aware their may have be limitations in their research, but they believe their showed that their “pair of studies showed that focusing on getting a new perspective on one’s secrets is a superior means of making oneself feel more positive about them”(663-664). Bibliography: Kelly, A., Kenny, C., Klusas, J., and von Weiss, R. (2001). What Is It About Revealing Secrets That Is Beneficial? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27, 657-665. Word Count: 1054
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