Document Type
Article
Date of Original Version
2026
Department
Human Development and Family Science
Abstract
Objective: Previous research indicates a risk for student distress and secondary traumatic stress in college courses containing sensitive, trauma-related content. There is a need to understand how students with various levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) respond to sensitive material. Participants: Ninety undergraduates enrolled in a traumatic stress course. Methods: Students completed a survey assessing trauma-related symptoms and self-reported experiences with and reactions to trauma-related course content. Results: Regardless of PTSS levels, students responded to the course in a similar manner. However, results from a multivariate regression a moderation analysis indicated significant associations between PTSS levels and emotional reactivity, perceived drawbacks, and dissociation. Conclusions: Generally, students did not find trauma-related content “retraumatizing” even with various levels of trauma-related symptoms. Students with higher levels of PTSS who indicated dissociative symptoms reported fewer drawbacks, revealing a possible protective effect of dissociation. Implications for teaching trauma-based material based on current research are described.
Publication Title, e.g., Journal
Journal of American College Health
Citation/Publisher Attribution
Cless, J. D., Johnston, C. A., Nelson Goff, B. S., & Edwards, O. K. (2026). Trauma symptoms predict student course experiences: Undergraduate PTSS and learning about trauma-related content. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2026.2626149
Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2026.2626149
Author Manuscript
This is a pre-publication author manuscript of the final, published article.
Terms of Use
This article is made available under the terms and conditions applicable
towards Open Access Policy Articles, as set forth in our Terms of Use.