Glad to see some empirical evidence on this.. The findings make a lot of sense, but the empirical validation is especially important and warranted. I just wonder whether or not this will make any sort of significant impact on the usage of trigger warnings.. Best, Cole Butler Faculty Specialist Project Coordinator: Treating Parents with ADHD and their Children (TPAC <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__umdadhd.org_ongoing-2Dprojects-2Dand-2Dfunding&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=dV_Z4Ej8Zt8YT2oPvUCDxd3UVPrLhfLip_h4RRqkhzE&s=qW75dW1L3ZyuW5XXgzI3qxXBmaNzXoHGP_X41pbuHzA&e= >) University of Maryland UMD ADHD Lab <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.umdadhd.org_cole&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=dV_Z4Ej8Zt8YT2oPvUCDxd3UVPrLhfLip_h4RRqkhzE&s=K-xXlkeqxIPLSZJuokeaI69zXJf-DPFgeRizGH1vgA0&e= > 2103W, Cole Field House | College Park, MD 20742 tel 301.405.6163 On Thu, Sep 10, 2020 at 8:03 AM Henriques, Gregg - henriqgx < [log in to unmask]> wrote: > Hi TOK Folks, > > > > Someone backchanneled me this article forwarded from Ken Pope’s list serve > on trigger warnings. See below. Summary is that the overall picture does > not offer strong endorsement of their utility, at least from the empirical > findings gathered to date, and is probably more likely to enhance a > trauma-victim narrative overall. > > > > I think the debates around trigger warnings highlight one of the most > central dilemmas in today’s world, which is the tension between (and > massive polarization around) creating safe, equitable environments that > enable people of all stripes and backgrounds to navigate and have access > without undue hardship or marginalization AND ensuring folks are > accountable and responsible for their own vulnerabilities, weaknesses and > are not celebrated or reinforced or coddled for a victim identity that > sometimes can be too easily claimed and asserted, especially if rights are > being proclaimed absent equal focus on responsibility. The stoic philosophy > is a good guide on this latter point, and it is something that was central > to Jordan Peterson’s rise. > > > > Note that the social/relational motivational dynamics on this tension can > be framed by the Influence Matrix > <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.unifiedtheoryofknowledge.org_8-2Dkey-2Dideas_the-2Dinfluence-2Dmatrix&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=dV_Z4Ej8Zt8YT2oPvUCDxd3UVPrLhfLip_h4RRqkhzE&s=nRcXZEA2LUiUmuOD-_Yrugol5UbL6shssXXsJo5CwvY&e= >. > If folks are interested in hearing more, I can elaborate. > > > > Best, > Gregg > > > > > > ----- Forwarded Message ----- > > *From:* Ken Pope <[log in to unmask]> > > *Sent:* Tuesday, September 8, 2020, 06:31:08 AM PDT > > *Subject:* Helping or Harming? Effect of Trigger Warnings on People w/ > Trauma Histories—Random Assignment Study of 451 Trauma Survivors > > > > *Clinical Psychological Science* has scheduled a study for publication in > a future issue: "Helping or Harming? The Effect of Trigger Warnings on > Individuals With Trauma Histories.” > > > > The authors are Payton J. Jones, Benjamin W. Bellet, & Richard J. McNally. > > > > Here’s how it opens: > > > > [begin excerpt] > > > > Giving a trigger warning means providing prior notification about > forthcoming content that may be emotionally disturbing (Boysen, 2017). In > this sense, trigger warnings are similar to PG-13 or “viewer discretion > advised” warnings that are common across many different forms of media. > Trigger warnings are distinct in that they originated as a measure of > protection specifically for survivors of trauma. For people with > posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), viewing reminders of trauma can spark > painful reexperiencing symptoms (e.g., flashbacks; American Psychiatric > Association [APA], 2013). Trigger warnings originated in online discussion > groups for survivors of sexual trauma in which individuals would warn > readers before discussing their experiences. Since their inception, trigger > warnings have expanded far beyond the boundaries of specialized online > communities. Trigger warnings are now used in educational settings, social > media, entertainment, and other venues. In addition to their expansion in > setting, they have also expanded in scope beyond sexual violence (Wilson, > 2015). > > > > Trigger warnings have sparked considerable debate in higher education. > Proponents of trigger warnings have emphasized their importance in creating > an inclusive atmosphere for disadvantaged groups on campus (e.g., Karasek, > 2016). They have argued that trigger warnings provide agency to engage or > not to engage and that they allow trauma survivors to adequately prepare to > engage with difficult material. Critics have suggested that trigger > warnings imperil free speech, academic freedom, and effective teaching, > which prevents students from engaging with challenging material (e.g., > Ellison, 2016). Other critics have suggested that trigger warnings foster > unreasonable expectations about the world, hampering natural resilience > among young people (e.g., Lukianoff & Haidt, 2015). Furthermore, trigger > warnings could also be problematic for trauma survivors in particular > (McNally, 2016). People who view trauma as a core part of their identity > have worse symptoms (Berntsen & Rubin, 2006; Brown, Antonius, Kramer, Root, > & Hirst, 2010; Robinaugh & McNally, 2011). Therefore, trigger warnings > might iatrogenically reinforce the importance of past traumatic events for > the very people they were originally designed to help. > > > > The arguments surrounding trigger warnings are often complex. Before > diving into this complexity, a much more basic question should be answered: > Do trigger warnings actually work? That is, do they help trauma survivors > emotionally prepare to engage with difficult material? From the vantage > point of clinical science, trigger warnings are a type of community-based > clinical intervention intended to foster emotional well-being among trauma > survivors. Yet because of their grassroots origin in a nonclinical setting, > trigger warnings have expanded for years without the rigorous scientific > evaluation that normally accompanies such interventions. > > > > [end excerpt] > > > > Another excerpt: "Trauma survivors (N = 451) were randomly assigned to > either receive or not to receive trigger warnings before reading passages > from world literature. We found no evidence that trigger warnings were > helpful for trauma survivors, for participants who self-reported a > posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis, or for participants who > qualified for probable PTSD, even when survivors’ trauma matched the > passages’ content. We found substantial evidence that trigger warnings > countertherapeutically reinforce survivors’ view of their trauma as central > to their identity." > > > > Here’s how the Discussion section opens: "Past research has indicated that > trigger warnings are unhelpful in reducing anxiety. The results of this > study are consistent with that conclusion. This study was the first to > focus on how trigger warnings function in a sample of people who had > survived Criterion A trauma as defined by the DSM–5 (APA, 2013). Trigger > warnings did not reduce anxiety for this sample broadly. Trigger warnings > also did not reduce anxiety among people who met a clinical cutoff for PTSD > symptoms, reported a diagnosis of PTSD, or reported that the stimuli > matched the content of their past trauma. Trigger warnings showed trivially > small effects on response anxiety overall. When effects did emerge, they > tended toward small increases in anxiety rather than decreases." > > > > Another excerpt: > > > > [begin excerpt] > > > > We found substantial evidence that giving trigger warnings to trauma > survivors caused them to view trauma as more central to their life > narrative. This effect is a reason for worry. Some trigger warnings > explicitly suggest that trauma survivors are uniquely vulnerable (e.g., “ . > . . especially in those with a history of trauma”). Even when trigger > warnings mention content only, the implicit message that trauma survivors > are vulnerable remains (Why else provide a warning?). These messages may > reinforce the notion that trauma is invariably a watershed event that > causes permanent psychological change. In reality, a majority of trauma > survivors are resilient, experiencing little if any lasting psychological > changes as a result of their experience (Bonanno, 2004; Bonanno & Mancini, > 2008). Aggregated across various types of trauma, just 4% of potentially > traumatic events result in PTSD (Liu et al., 2017).2 However, trauma > survivors who view their traumatic experience as central to their life have > elevated PTSD symptoms (Berntsen & Rubin, 2006; Brown et., 2010; Robinaugh > & McNally, 2011). Trauma centrality prospectively predicts elevated PTSD > symptoms, whereas the reverse is not true (Boals & Ruggero, 2016). > Decreases in trauma centrality mediated therapy outcomes (Boals & Murrell, > 2016). This suggests that increasing trauma centrality is directly > countertherapeutic. In other words, trigger warnings may harm survivors by > increasing trauma centrality. > > > > We tested whether the severity of PTSD symptoms in our sample moderated > any of our tested hypotheses. In most cases, we found either evidence for > no moderation or ambiguous evidence. However, we did find substantial > evidence that PTSD symptoms moderated the effect of trigger warnings on > response anxiety. For individuals who had more severe PTSD, trigger > warnings increased anxiety. This effect is ironic in the sense that trigger > warnings may be most harmful for the individuals they were designed to > protect. We found no evidence that individuals’ prior exposure to trigger > warnings moderated any of the previous effects. > > > > [end excerpt] > > > > *TO OBTAIN A COPY OF THE ARTICLE*: Contact info for reprint requests and > questions or other correspondence about this article: Payton J. Jones, > Department of Psychology, Harvard University, 33 Kirkland St., Cambridge, > MA 02138 E-mail: [log in to unmask] > > > > Ken Pope > > > > Pope: Anti-Racism & Racism in Psychology as a Science, Discipline, & > Profession: 57 Articles & Books (Citations + Summaries) > <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__dmanalytics2.com_click-3Fu-3Dhttps-253A-252F-252Fkspope.com-252Fethics-252Fanti-2Dracism.php-26i-3D2-26d-3D0GDJwmS2RAeVGqAxC7KCjg-26e-3Dparisa13-2540yahoo.com-26a-3DouPT-5Fc8lR-2Daj2BhDXVKqnw-26s-3DljbcgpWdupY&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=wjF8cZoiFchamTuxBdDEmw&m=EE8PNx0Z-aLWwmBIetex3DgszsSC1kvFjiumM4XgWwY&s=EoLANtNgOlTzvC_FSqBWGHoZ5PvHdnnsiVUdt7hOcXw&e=> > > > > Pope & Vasquez: Ethics in Psychotherapy & Counseling: A Practical Guide, > 5th Edition > <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__dmanalytics2.com_click-3Fu-3Dhttps-253A-252F-252Fkspope.com-252Fethics-252Fethics.php-26i-3D3-26d-3D0GDJwmS2RAeVGqAxC7KCjg-26e-3Dparisa13-2540yahoo.com-26a-3DouPT-5Fc8lR-2Daj2BhDXVKqnw-26s-3DP8aUsUOOqUk&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=wjF8cZoiFchamTuxBdDEmw&m=EE8PNx0Z-aLWwmBIetex3DgszsSC1kvFjiumM4XgWwY&s=keh_OOPpAY7bzFQrPv9EOU8k3kxoIhO0L88qU2gXamE&e=> > > > > Pope: A Human Rights & Ethics Crisis Facing the World's Largest > Organization of Psychologists > <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__dmanalytics2.com_click-3Fu-3Dhttps-253A-252F-252Fkspope.com-252Fapa-252Fcrisis.php-26i-3D4-26d-3D0GDJwmS2RAeVGqAxC7KCjg-26e-3Dparisa13-2540yahoo.com-26a-3DouPT-5Fc8lR-2Daj2BhDXVKqnw-26s-3D0Iu7AfGxHpY&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=wjF8cZoiFchamTuxBdDEmw&m=EE8PNx0Z-aLWwmBIetex3DgszsSC1kvFjiumM4XgWwY&s=BBvvhGoUEWctR7wbwVbFm3L0yXh3nXT3t70P75VIC3Y&e=> > > > > NOTE: As with any of these Psychology News List messages, please feel > free to forward this message to any list or individuals who might be > interested. 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