Self-authoring

Although popularised by the psychologist Jordan Peterson, the concept of self-authoring is based on research developed by the social psychologist James Pennebaker on what he calls expressive writing.

To have an overview of Jordan Peterson’s Self-Authoring programme I recommend first reading the article The Writing Assignment That Changes Lives published by NPR.

• What I find particularly compelling about the research into the impact of this approach is how it improves the outcomes of students from ethnic minority backgrounds who are at risk of dropping out of university.
• After reading the article reflect on how your students might benefit from this approach.

In this next video Jordan Peterson makes the case for self-authoring as a transformative experience.

• Here James Pennebaker talks about how to use expressive writing to heal ourselves.
• How could we adapt this to our context with our students or clients?
• What obstacles or challenges might there be to making expressive writing a part of our writing routine?
• What potential benefits do you see?

• If you want to know more about Pennebaker’s research I recommend this TED talk in which he talks about the surprising importance of pronouns.
• Could knowledge of this help us be more effective teachers? If so, how?