Trigger Warnings in College Classes?

[alp227]

TYT University with John Iadarola and Bree Essrig: Colleges and universities around the country are debating placing a "trigger warning" on courses that could potentially upset students. The idea comes from psychological research showing certain issues can trigger symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder.

[1000words]

1. Life is a trigger.

Are we preparing these folks for the world or will they need trigger warnings at their jobs, too?

[alp227]

2. What's wrong with consideration for those who aren't mentally strong?

Honesty is the best policy. INFORM people of the content they're about to witness. Guess what...PTSD is a real thing that happens to adults after a traumatic incident. EVEN MEMBERS OF OUR MILITARY (supposedly the most "mentally strong" of people out here). And you are telling me even on freaking DU I have to explain this shit? Fuck.

[phil89]

3. Not a good precedent in my opinion.

The exact opposite of what people need to be taught. It's not the world that creates the reactions, it's the beliefs about it. They should be in treatment if they are that fragile. They will never be able to control the external world or get trigger warnings for everything.

[tclambert]

4. My understanding is that anything can act as a trigger.

If you have a serious car accident while listening to Barry Manilow on the radio . . . subsequently hearing Barry Manilow may trigger bad memories. (All right, that was a horrible example. I apologize to all Barry Manilow fans.)'

The point is that innocuous things can trigger symptoms of PTSD because they can be associated with the trauma by pure happenstance.

[X_Digger]

5. Yeah, it does students no favors, I think. n/t