Abstract

As educators who teach about sexual violence and victimization in our criminal justice and forensic science courses and a psychology undergraduate who was learning about these topics, we were curious whether and how the hashtag #MeToo is changing classroom dynamics. We examine two trauma informed education activities used in classes at two different universities to assess students’ attitudes towards learning about violence and victimization in the #MeToo era. Data come from students’ reflections on content warnings and engagement with potentially upsetting or even triggering material at the beginning and end of an online Criminal Justice course (N = 31) and reflections on a guest speaker who shared the on-going trauma of an unsolved homicide of a family member in a Forensic Science course (N = 90). Qualitative data revealed that even students who experience discomfort see the benefits of being exposed to sensitive material, such as increased empathy, feeling more prepared to interact with victims and/or their families, understanding the emotional tolls of working in the field, and feeling more prepared for jobs in criminal justice and forensic agencies.

摘要

作为在我们的刑事司法和法医科学课程中教授性暴力和受害的教育工作者以及正在学习这些主题的心理学本科生，我们很好奇#MeToo 标签是否以及如何改变课堂动态。我们研究了在两所不同大学的课堂上使用的两项创伤知情教育活动，以评估学生在#MeToo 时代对学习暴力和受害的态度。数据来自学生对在线刑事司法课程（N = 31）开始和结束时对内容警告和参与可能令人不安甚至触发材料的反思以及对分享未解决的持续创伤的演讲嘉宾的反思在法医科学课程中谋杀一名家庭成员 (N = 90)。