Students responses to differing trigger warnings: A replication and extension

Abstract

Objective

The goal of this study was to assess students’ responses to a potentially triggering passage from literature using differing trigger warnings.

Participants and Method

123 undergraduates read a passage which contained depictions of physical and sexual assault. Students were randomly assigned to differing trigger warning conditions prior to reading the passage that anticipated either neutral, positive, or negative emotional reactions. Measures of PTSD symptoms and distress were taken on Day 1, Day 2, and Day 14.

Results

Distress to the triggering passage did not vary as a function of either trauma history or trigger warning type. Those with higher PTSD scores to start did not experience more distress over time.

Discussion

The data suggest that instructors can assign challenging passages with the expectation that those with related traumas will not be disproportionately affected. In addition, the type of warning is not likely to impact on student emotional responses.

Keywords:

• Assault
• PTSD
• posttraumatic stress disorder
• psychological trauma
• trigger warnings

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of United States of America and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of Middlebury College and Bucknell University.

Additional information

Funding

This publication was made possible in part by an AREA Grant (R15 MH081276) to Matthew Kimble from the National Institute of Mental Health.