New study says "trigger warnings" are totally useless, even if you're really traumatized

A new study in the journal "Clinical Psychological Science" claims that so-called "trigger warnings" – visible warnings placed on controversial material and likely to cause post-traumatic stress disorder in individuals with certain forms of trauma – have only "trivial effects" on the mental health of a person and are mostly worthless.

Robby Soave of Reason Magazine reports that the study found that "

"The researchers showed 1,394 volunteers of painful content (in video and written form), some of them having been warned by trigger warnings such as," WARNING TRIGGER: the following video may contain footage graphics of a deadly car crash. This content can be disturbing, "according to Metro UK." The researchers found that the users' responses to the content were the same, whether or not they saw a warning. "

"Like many others, we were hearing new stories week after week about the trigger warnings that were being requested or introduced at universities around the world," said one of the leading researchers in the world. study at Metro. "Our results suggest that these warnings, although well-intentioned, are not helpful."

The data also suggests, according to researchers, that trigger warnings are of little help to those who may have experienced real trauma: "There was little difference between the groups. In other words, people with a personal history of trauma who received a trigger warning reported similar levels. those who have not received any warning.

In fact, according to researchers, previous studies have shown that avoiding controversial content or potentially "triggers" could worsen the symptoms of PTSD, and that contact with traumatic material in a controlled environment could help people who have suffered trauma to heal. each patient will discuss this approach with their own qualified professional.

Researchers, at least, do not recommend using trigger warnings as a regular academic practice, although they could still warn some students who might choose to miss a course rather than encounter triggers.