How strong is the evidence for Journaling?

Expressive-writing and journaling interventions — writing about a stressful or traumatic experience for a set period, following the classic Pennebaker paradigm — have been tested in numerous randomized controlled trials, and the accumulated evidence has not shown the general health benefit the practice is often assumed to have. That evidence is currently rated moderate (50/100), built on 5 published studies, including 4 randomized controlled trials and 1 meta-analysis -- a reasonable base, but not yet enough for full certainty.