"An Exploratory Study of Traumatic Stress Among Newspaper Journalists," by
Roger A. Simpson and James G. Boggs. Published in Journalism and
Communication Monographs, Spring 1999.
The research in brief:
There is an unwritten code among journalists that few, if any,
assignments defy one's capacity to take photographs, gather facts, or
produce a story. It is part of the code the journalists should not
acknowledge the emotional toll of covering a violent event or of a beat
that repeatedly involves traumatic events.
This study asked journalists at six daily newspapers in Michigan
and Washington State to respond to a scale that describes behaviors and
emotional responses that are common in traumatic stress. The journalists
also recalled early and recent assignments that involved exposure to
death, injury and destruction.
We found that the longer a person had worked as a reporter or a
photographer, the more likely he or she was to report symptoms of trauma
effects. We also found that journalists who covered auto crashes at the
scene were more likely to be aware of intrusive images and memories.
The study also observed that while journalists are aware of such
effects of their work, they don't generally find serious programs of
training, support, and counseling in their workplaces. "Coping was
invariably a personal burden, which was handled in widely varying degrees
of success."
For a copy of the study, contact the
Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma.
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