Self-Disclosure and Post-traumatic Growth in Korean Adults: A Multiple Mediating Model of Deliberate Rumination, Positive Social Responses, and Meaning of Life

Abstract

BackgroundTo explore how self-disclosure leads to post-traumatic growth (PTG) in adults who have experienced traumatic events, this study identified the relationship between self-disclosure and post-traumatic growth in Korean adults. We examined a parallel multiple mediating model for this relationship.MethodsParticipants were 318 Korean male and female adult participants aged 20 years or older who had experienced trauma. We measured deliberate rumination, positive social responses, and the meaning of life as mediating variables.ResultsThe results revealed that the study variables positively correlated with PTG. Self-disclosure was positively correlated with deliberate rumination, positive social responses, and meaning of life. In the multiple mediating model, deliberate rumination, positive social responses, and meaning of life mediated the relationship between self-disclosure and PTG.ConclusionSelf-disclosure, deliberate rumination, positive social responses, and meaning of life play an important role in the growth of adults who have experienced traumatic events. The findings of this study should provide valuable information for future research and for mental health professionals who want to promote the PTG of their clients.

Empathy and Post-Traumatic Growth among Chinese Community Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Roles of Self-Disclosure and Social Support

“…The results indicated that self-disclosure is a crucial explanatory mechanism through which empathy relates to community workers’ PTG. Specifically, empathic community workers tended to score higher on self-disclosure, which was related to higher levels of personal growth during the pandemic, consistent with past research [ 11 , 28 ]. In this sense, high self-disclosure is not only a reflection of empathic ability but also an internal antecedent of PTG.…”

“…Previous findings suggest that PTG occurs across various populations [ 9 ] who experience traumatic events, which has attracted scholars’ interest in exploring its associated variables. Social support [ 10 ], deliberate rumination (i.e., a positive cognitive process through which one can reconstruct an existing schema and understanding the cause and meaning of an event) [ 11 , 12 ], and psychosocial interventions [ 13 ] have been reported to help people grow after traumatic events. Some studies have identified that self-disclosure [ 11 ] and emotional regulation [ 14 ] can lead to PTG.…”

“…Social support [ 10 ], deliberate rumination (i.e., a positive cognitive process through which one can reconstruct an existing schema and understanding the cause and meaning of an event) [ 11 , 12 ], and psychosocial interventions [ 13 ] have been reported to help people grow after traumatic events. Some studies have identified that self-disclosure [ 11 ] and emotional regulation [ 14 ] can lead to PTG. More recently, studies have found that empathy helps PTG [ 4 , 15 ].…”

“…For example, studies on people with mental illness have found that disclosure of mental illness can lead to receiving social support [ 46 ]. Further studies have documented that self-disclosure influences psychological well-being through social support as a mediating factor [ 11 ]. Given the research supporting the mediator model, we posited that self-disclosure and social support multiply mediate the association between empathy and PTG.…”

Associations among posttraumatic growth, demographic characteristics, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and trauma type, with a focus on sexual violence

“…Disclosure can also promote PTG (Saltzman et al., 2018) as it may help individuals make sense of their experience, reframe it, and challenge negative beliefs. Positive social reactions have been found to be related to higher levels of growth (Ryu & Suh, 2022; Ullman, 2014). However, negative reactions are inversely related to PTG among sexual violence survivors (Ullman, 2014) and may be more strongly associated with adverse outcomes, including PTSD (Dworkin et al., 2019).…”