AY 2013

The Issue On Trigger Warnings And How It Negatively Impacts The Students’ Mindset

We have already mentioned about the mental issues that students experience in college, and how the campuses are supposed to address the problems, given that the current setup in education puts so much pressure on the students. To be more specific, the use of trigger warnings, or things that may invoke psychological or physiological reactions in people, is already a practice for those within the academe. The trigger warnings are most often used in materials that are likely to incite a person’s deep seated trauma.

Some instructors in universities provide trigger warnings before playing certain films in class, or posting texts and other contents that cover violence or sexual abuse. This practice is needed in order to give students an advance notice to prepare themselves psychologically and mentally. Still, in spite of its helpful purpose, the use of trigger warnings in colleges is being debated.

For some experts, trigger warnings are important because they allow vulnerable people to prepare their minds before they face something that is not easy for them to comprehend or digest. If they are still not ready to encounter such sensitive materials, they can choose to avoid seeing them. Those students who are dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder may opt to seek out an alternative way to acquire the necessary information without having to encounter the stress-inducing materials.

On the other hand, some critics argue that trigger warnings constrain free speech and academic freedom by discouraging the discussion of topics that might incite distressing reactions in some students.

Casopis InterFON is a blogging site dedicated to deliver all the relevant and up-to-date information regarding the current education system in the United States.