First implemented to acknowledge the trauma of soldiers and survivors of physical and sexual assault, trigger warnings are now used more broadly in media and classrooms. Beyond being applied to material dealing with violence or sexual assault, warnings have expanded to protect readers and viewers from anything that might elicit a negative response—racism, classism, and sexism, xenophobia, and homophobia, and mentions of mental illness (1). Within classrooms, 64.7% of instructors admitted to using trigger warnings even though 3.4% of students requested one (2), and the increased presence of such warnings in educational institutions has raised much controversy: how much do we actually need them, and how effective are they?
In a 2018 study (3), 270 participants without a PTSD diagnosis were asked to read “neutral,” “mildly distressing,” and “markedly distressing” passages from world literature. Of the group, 133 participants received trigger warnings while the other 137 did not. Participants were then asked to rate their responses to the passage and were asked about their beliefs on the potential for words to harm. The study found that trigger warnings had no significant effect in lowering distress among participants, but instead increased anxiety significantly among participants who strongly believed that words can harm. The increased anxiety in that specific group suggests trigger warnings themselves have no intrinsic effect on the reader, and that any effect felt might be more the result of a self-fulfilling prophecy in which the readers’ react in the way they expect themselves to. Those who received trigger warnings were also shown to believe they were more emotionally vulnerable to trauma and that trauma survivors lack the resilience to recover. Without meaning to, trigger warnings thus “enforce a ‘soft stigma’ concerning trauma survivors” (3) that seem to say that survivors will always in some way be defined by their most negative experiences. The implication that trauma indefinitely impairs a person’s ability to function “normally” reveals that however well-intentioned trigger warnings are, they might be harming the very people they try to help.
But if trigger warnings are so deeply embedded in our current culture, mustn’t there be some sort of benefit to trigger warnings, at least to trauma survivors, that offsets the ‘soft stigma’ potential for trigger warnings? Unfortunately, little to no evidence has yet been found that trigger warnings have significant effects, even among trauma survivors.
In a series of experiments with 1,394 college students, 89% of whom had experienced at least one traumatic event, it was found that even among trauma survivors, trigger warnings had “trivial effects” (4). While trigger warnings were used over content that would generally be perceived as distressing, PTSD triggers are often extremely specific external stimuli such as a specific color, word, street sign, or even a person who resembles someone related to the trauma (5). In such situations, the true “triggers” were overlooked by trigger warnings which are more of a general prediction of what might be distressing rather than an effective caution tailored for those who most need it. In that regard, trigger warnings appear to act as a bandaid over a bullet wound, appearing to address complex issues with simple solutions. Perhaps, if life came with trigger warnings or more accessible and affordable resources for trauma survivors, those diagnosed with PTSD would find it easier to reintegrate into daily life.
And perhaps, trigger warnings have ceased to serve the people they were first created to serve. “Trauma is common, but PTSD is rare (6)” —about 60% of men and 50% of women experience trauma, but only about 10% of women and 4% of men develop PTSD as a result (7), and while PTSD remains relatively rare, trigger warnings lead to more avoidance in content among the general population (8). In the end, are we using trigger warnings because it gives us the choice to filter out concepts we disagree with, or because we are advocating for the mental health community?
New studies are in the works to more adequately determine the effects of trigger warnings over a larger sample size and within groups diagnosed with PTSD. Until then, perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to invest a little more trust in our emotional resilience to truly answer the question: how much do we actually need trigger warnings?
References:
- Admin. (2017, December 12). An Introduction to Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings. Retrieved August 1, 2019, from https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/inclusive-teaching/2017/12/12/an-introduction-to-content-warnings-and-trigger-warnings/
- Kamenetz, A. (2016, September 07). Half Of Professors In NPR Ed Survey Have Used 'Trigger Warnings'. Retrieved August 1, 2019, from http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/09/07/492979242/half-of-professors-in-npr-ed-survey-have-used-trigger-warnings
- Bellet, B. W., Jones, P. J., & Mcnally, R. J. (2018, July 02). Trigger warning: Empirical evidence ahead. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry,61, 134-141. doi:10.1016/j.jbtep.2018.07.002
- Sanson, M., Strange, D., & Garry, M. (2019, March 04). Trigger Warnings Are Trivially Helpful at Reducing Negative Affect, Intrusive Thoughts, and Avoidance. Clinical Psychological Science,7(4), 778-793. doi:10.1177/2167702619827018
- IAFF Center. (2018, September 25). Recognizing PTSD Triggers. Retrieved August 1, 2019, from http://www.iaffrecoverycenter.com/blog/recognizing-ptsd-triggers/
- McNally, R. J. (2013, September 13). If You Need A Trigger Warning, You Need P.T.S.D. Treatment. The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2019, from www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2016/09/13/do-trigger-warnings-work/if-you-need-a-trigger-warning-you-need-ptsd-treatment
- Friedman, M. J., MD, PhD. (2018, August 17). History of PTSD in Veterans: Civil War to DSM-5. Retrieved August 1, 2019, from https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/what/history_ptsd.asp
- Fagan, A. (2019, April 17). Do Trigger Warnings Actually Work? Retrieved August 1, 2019, from http://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brainstorm/201904/do-trigger-warnings-actually-work