Research Essay

Journalism
2023, Vol. 0(0) 1–21
Thriving after trauma in © The Author(s) 2023
Article reuse guidelines:
emotional livelihood journalism sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/14648849231183513
journals.sagepub.com/home/jou
in China: Vicarious exposure to
trauma and vicarious
post-traumatic growth among
journalists

Ying Xiong 
Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang, China

Shengqing Liao 
Fudan University, Shanghai, China

Abstract
This study examined the negative impact of vicarious exposure to trauma (VET) and its
transformation into vicarious post-traumatic growth (VPTG) among a particular type of
journalist in China: emotional livelihood journalists. These journalists are often exposed
to indirect trauma and have a high degree of emotional involvement with their subjects.
Utilising cluster sampling, 126 such journalists (F = 92, M = 34) were selected to par-
ticipate in this study. VET, secondary traumatic stress (STS), empathy, social support, and
VPTG were measured through an online questionnaire to provide a moderated mediation
model. Linear regression analysis showed that (1) VET directly predicts VPTG in re-
porters, and indirectly predicts VPTG through the mediating effect of STS; (2) when
empathy is high, VET has a greater impact on STS levels, but when empathy is low, its
effect is non-significant in the relationship between VET and VPTG; and (3) social support
was not a significant moderator in the model. This study is among the first to link VET to
VPTG among journalists, demonstrating that STS mediates this relationship and that
empathy moderates the association between VET and STS. The results imply that dealing
indirectly with trauma can lead to positive psychological changes in journalists. Media
organisations can facilitate VPTG by offering comprehensive psychological support for
journalists exposed to indirect traumatic events.

Corresponding author:
Shengqing Liao, School of Journalism, Fudan University, 400 Dingguo Road, Shanghai 200433, China.
Email: sqliao@fudan.edu.cn
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Keywords
Vicarious exposure to trauma, secondary traumatic stress, empathy, social support,
vicarious post-traumatic growth, journalists, journalism

Introduction
Media content affects not only its audience but also its creators (Dworznik, 2008).
Journalists are continually involved in and exposed to trauma in an attempt to meet
society‘s constant need for the immediate coverage of disasters, crises, and violence.
Repeated exposure to trauma can lead to adverse psychological responses in journalists
(Seely, 2019). The spread of COVID-19 has also created enormous challenges for
journalists in areas such as mental health (Perreault and Perreault, 2021), increasing the
frequency and extent to which journalists are exposed to traumatic events at work. As a
result, journalists experience adverse psychological reactions, including anxiety, fear,
insomnia, helplessness, and compassion fatigue, all of which are symptoms of post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; Dworznik, 2008). The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR) states that PTSD is a mental health condition that can
occur after a person experiences or witnesses a traumatic event (American Psychiatric
Association, 2022). However, most journalists do not experience just one damaging event
that triggers PTSD during their careers; rather, they may be repeatedly exposed to
collateral trauma (Dworznik, 2017).
Some journalists interact with traumatised clients throughout their careers; therefore,
these journalists are similar to psychological counsellors and social workers (Hu et al.,
2011: 88–92). They may experience frequent, repetitive, and prolonged exposure to
traumatic content, without ever leaving the newsroom (Feinstein et al., 2014). However,
they are not directly exposed to trauma like first responders in warzones or disaster
reporters (Rupar, 2020); therefore, their trauma symptoms may not meet the clinical
criteria for PTSD. However, they still experience negative psychological states that
should not be ignored. Specifically, their symptoms are more consistent with the criteria
for secondary traumatic stress (STS), which results from indirect exposure to traumatic
events and can lead to negative emotions, compassion fatigue, vigilance, and avoidance,
similar to PTSD (Figley, 1995: 3–28).
In China, there is a particular category of journalism known as ‘emotional livelihood
journalism’, which developed from Chinese people’s livelihood journalism. Since 2006,
China’s first ‘emotional livelihood journalism’ has been broadcast on Jiangsu Satellite
TV’s ‘1860 News Eye’. The programme includes ‘Emotional Assistance’ to help others
resolve their emotional difficulties as well as the ‘Emotional News Network’ from across
the country (Cao, 2007). Reporters in such programmes are exposed indirectly to
traumatic events through significant on-site conflict and emotional dialogues. These
reporters often cover negative stories such as domestic violence, abuse, disputes, and
children’s disappearances. For them, it is necessary not only to record news events but
also to participate in mediation. This type of programme requires reporters to dig into the
depth of topic selection, mediate the emotions of interviewees, and ultimately achieve the
Xiong and Liao 3

goal of communicating public emotions and maintaining social harmony (Hu et al., 2011:
2–3). Therefore, such journalists may be more emotionally involved with their subjects
and more empathetic to their interviewees than traditional journalists. Empathy is critical
in triggering STS (Rauvola et al., 2019), making these journalists more susceptible.
However, their professional prestige and social rank are far lower than those of ‘elite’
journalists (e.g. current affairs and investigative reporters) in China because emotional
livelihood programmes are considered superficial, trivial soft news (Sjøvaag, 2015). This
is concerning because lower symbolic capital may lead to fewer factors to positively
mediate psychological trauma, such as a lack of organisational support.
Positive psychology is a new perspective that reorients psychology towards under-
standing and fostering preventive psychological health (Seligman, 1999) and studies the
positive aspects of human strength and virtue (Sheldon and King, 2001). Studies have
focused on the positive effects of indirect trauma exposure on trauma workers, which are
referred to as ‘vicarious post-traumatic growth’ (VPTG; Zoellner and Maercker, 2006). In
essence, many individuals exposed to indirect trauma, such as psychologists, firefighters,
and healthcare workers, experience post-traumatic growth (PTG) at work (Splevins et al.,
2010), which entails improvements in self-perception, interpersonal relationships, and life
philosophy (Arnold et al., 2005).
This study draws on the constructivist self-development theory to explore journalists’
responses to traumatic events. Traumatic experiences that disrupt individual patterns may
have positive or negative effects (Saakvitne et al., 1998). Restructuring the individual
cognitive patterns is one of the pathways to PTG (Cohen and Collens, 2013).
At present, many scholars pay attention to the direct and indirect trauma faced by
journalists as well as the subsequent symptoms of PTSD and STS, but the research mainly
focuses on trauma symptoms and the influencing factors that lead to these symptoms.
There is a lack of research on the mechanism of the positive effects of journalists’ indirect
trauma exposure. First, the present study focuses on Chinese reporters of emotional
livelihood journalism and, for the first time, explores their indirect trauma exposure.
Second, the factors that may predispose Chinese journalists to STS are explored. Finally,
this study examines the mediators through which indirect trauma exposure contributes to
VPTG and can help improve journalists’ mental health.

Vicarious exposure to trauma and STS among journalists

Research has shown that individuals who work with trauma victims also experience
negative psychological effects (Bercier and Maynard, 2014), which include nightmares,
insomnia, intrusive thoughts, anxiety, anger, and sadness (McCann and Pearlman, 1990).
Such work is known as vicarious exposure to trauma (VET) and includes listening to
descriptions of traumatic events (Pearlman and Saakvine, 1995). As trauma workers,
journalists are frequently exposed to life-threatening or serious casualties, including
repeated or extreme exposure to objectionable traumatic events (Smith et al., 2019),
resulting in trauma research which has focused on journalists’ PTSD, depression
(MacDonald et al., 2021), and compassion fatigue (Dworznik, 2017). Smith et al. (2019)
found that 4%–29% of journalists experienced PTSD, while Dworznik (2008) reported a
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prevalence of 7% in a sample of American journalists. Research also suggests that 86%–

100% of journalists have been exposed to potentially traumatic experiences as part of their
work (Dworznik, 2011; Feinstein, 2013). The higher the number of traumatic events they
experience, the higher the rate of traumatic disorders (MacDonald et al., 2017). It was also
found that the rate of Chinese TV journalists suffering from PTSD was 35% (Lu and Shi,
2013), which is higher than that of American (i.e. 9.7%; Smith, 2008) and British
(i.e. 12%; Williams and Cartwright, 2021) TV journalists.
In recent years, many scholars have also begun to pay attention to journalists exposed
to indirect trauma because most journalists may not have suffered extremely damaging
traumatic events in their work but may have repeatedly endured minor trauma (Dworznik,
2017; Buchanan and Keats, 2011). Such cumulative indirect trauma can lead to STS.
(Figley (1995): 3–28) suggested that the symptoms of STS and PTSD are almost identical,
with the main difference being that those who experience the trauma first-hand and
second-hand may develop PTSD and STS, respectively. Thus, a person may not have
experienced trauma directly but may experience avoidance behaviour, hyperarousal, and
hypervigilance owing to exposure to trauma in others (Dworznik, 2017).
Of such studies on STS trauma in journalists, some were qualitative (Keats 2010;
Buchanan and Keats 2011), and several measured STS symptoms and potential predictors
and symptoms (Dworznik, 2008, 2017). Dworznik (2017) measured the personal and
professional variables affecting compassion fatigue, one of the symptoms of STS, and
concluded that the years of employment and frequency of trauma exposure will not affect
the symptoms of STS. However, there are also studies that have drawn contradictory
conclusions. The degree of trauma exposure is positively correlated with journalists’
gender, with symptoms such as depression appearing, especially for women (Malik et al.,
2022). Journalists’ trauma coverage intensity was also a significant predictor of STS
(Dworznik, 2017). However, there is no empirical research on STS targeting Chinese
journalists.
Given that the current research on STS by journalists mainly focuses on its negative
symptoms and predictors, while their results are different, it may be that the development
of STS symptoms is strongly influenced by the subjective factors of journalists (Figley,
1995; Rauvola et al., 2019). Both high involvement in indirect trauma and low symbolic
capital may make journalists of ‘emotional livelihood journalism’ more vulnerable to
vicarious trauma than others, yet these journalists rarely receive external support and
recognition. Exploring the mental health of emotional livelihood journalists may provide
new insight into the mental health of other journalists.
Therefore, we propose the following research question and hypotheses:

RQ1. What are the factors contributing to STS?

H1. Journalists’ level of VET is positively correlated with STS symptoms.

H2. Journalists’ demographic traits influence STS.
Xiong and Liao 5

Journalism and VPTG

A growing number of scholars are realising that these trauma workers may experience
growth in addition to pain (Weiss-Dagan et al., 2020). Tedeschi and Calhoun (1996)
coined the term post-traumatic growth (PTG), which is defined as the positive psy-
chological changes that an individual experiences as a result of a struggle with highly
challenging life circumstances, such as a trauma, crisis, or a highly stressful event. On this
basis, Arnold et al. (2005) introduced the term VPTG, which is the type of PTG that
occurs in individuals indirectly exposed to trauma and refers to the positive changes in
trauma workers after vicarious exposure to trauma. Such changes might include strength,
new possibilities, human relationships, appreciation for life, spirituality, and the ac-
quisition of new values (Tedeschi and Calhoun, 1996).
According to the constructivist self-development theory, individuals reconstruct reality
to understand life experiences around them. In this process of self-development, trauma
workers actively structure their personal perceptions and reality, potentially promoting
positive change (Trippany et al., 2004). In studies of psychotherapists, scholars have
found that PTG resulting from direct exposure to trauma differs slightly from that result
from indirect experiences of traumatic events, with trauma workers possibly gaining more
personal strength and self-efficacy than trauma patients themselves (Manning et al.,
2015). Those who work with trauma workers may experience growth from witnessing the
interviewee or client’s resilience and ability to overcome adversity, which is a positive and
powerful phenomenon (Tedeschi and Calhoun, 1996).
In a study of British journalists, it was found that their PTSD levels were significantly
correlated with their PTG (Williams and Cartwright, 2021). McMahon (2005) found that
journalists with PTSD symptoms experienced PTG when reporting on disasters and
tragedies and that the level of growth also increased as pathogenic responses grew. This
means that a large number of journalists may experience both PTSD and PTG when
exposed to traumatic content through their work.
However, there is little research on VPTG in journalists. VPTG research has instead
mainly focused on psychotherapists, medical workers, and social workers (Manning et al.,
2015). This is possibly owing to the current research on journalists prioritising reporters
who work in a direct trauma exposure environment (e.g. war and disaster reporters;
MacDonald et al., 2017).
Therefore, we posed the following research question:

RQ2. How does VET foster VPTG among Chinese emotional livelihood journalists?

Factors affecting STS and VPTG

The existing literature has identified several factors that influence the symptoms of STS
and VPTG in addition to VET. First, the available research suggests that there may be
multiple relationships between STS and VPTG. Weiss-Dagan et al. (2020) pointed out
that the level of trauma exposure, STS, and VPTG were significantly related among social
workers interacting with abused children. Samios et al. (2012) found a significant positive
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correlation between STS and VPTG in psychotherapists who worked with individuals
who had experienced sexual violence. However, the direction of the relationship between
these variables is inconsistent, with studies revealing positive, negative, and non-
significant relationships (Marziliano et al., 2020). Some researchers have pointed out
that the negative effects of experiencing VET most likely precede VPTG (Davis and
Macdonald, 2004). This means that there may be some trauma symptoms that precede
growth. Lee et al. (2017) found that STS plays a mediating role in the relationship between
trauma exposure and perceived health. Based on existing research and combined with H1,
which predicts that VET would support STS symptoms, this suggests a mediated rela-
tionship between VET and VPTG through STS.
Thus, this study aims to determine whether STS plays a mediating role in the rela-
tionship between VET and VPTG, as follows:

H3. STS mediates the path between VET and VPTG.

Second, being empathic is a double-edged sword for trauma workers. Kalisch (1973)
believed that empathy is the ability to empathise with others and to understand their
feelings. Only under the guidance of empathy can reporters and interviewees present
engaging news features based on mutual trust, such as solid bite sound effects or
emotional displays (Wahl-Jorgensen, 2012). For journalists on emotional livelihood
programmes, when they interview victims of domestic violence or other conflicts, they
need to solve the interviewees’ problems to promote the interview process, similar to
counsellors, psychotherapists, or other trauma workers. The stronger their ability
to empathise at work, the better they can understand the interviewees and guide them to
communicate their valid emotions. Therefore, those journalists with strong empathetic
abilities may possess better professional skills in this field.
In essence, empathy can help professionals metaphorically apply traumatic events to
their own lives, change their worldview, and gain a heightened sense of self-worth after
experiencing trauma, thereby promoting VPTG (Linley and Joseph, 2007). Qualitative
research by Splevins et al. (2010) described how trauma workers’ ability to empathise
stimulates their psychological growth. However, studies on the impact of empathy on
VPTG have not reached consistent conclusions. Some believe that certain studies have not
found a correlation between the two variables because a positive correlation only takes
place when the empathy exceeds a certain level (Manning et al., 2015).
Meanwhile, negative effects of empathy have also been identified-that is, trauma
exposure can trigger STS owing to empathy. Shu et al. (2017) found that the empathic
ability can affect sleep and generate vicarious anxiety. According to the Compassion
Fatigue Model, empathic responses to trauma can lead to burnout and STS in trauma
workers (Adams et al., 2006). Ogińska-Bulik et al. (2020) found that empathy was
significantly positively associated with STS. Specifically, trauma workers with high levels
of personal distress and empathy may accumulate negative psychological states that, if left
unchecked, contribute to STS. Therefore, empathy may both facilitate VPTG and
contribute to STS, becoming a double-edged sword affecting the mental health of trauma
workers.
Xiong and Liao 7

Thus, we propose the following hypotheses:

H4. Empathy moderates the path between VET and VPTG.
H5. Empathy moderates the path between VET and STS.

Third, social relationships also constitute a factor affecting STS and VPTG. Social
support is available to individuals in social relationships. Social support refers to the
spiritual and material support and help from family members, relatives, friends, col-
leagues, groups, organisations, and social relationships (Xiao, 1994). Numerous empirical
studies have found that a lack of social support from colleagues or organisations is an
important factor leading to job burnout (Dworznik, 2008). Dworznik (2017) reported the
journalists who perceive supervisor support and peer cohesion in the workplace have
lower STS symptoms.
However, the PTG model shows that social support has a positive effect on post-
traumatic adjustment to real life, improving social resources and reducing isolation and
loneliness (Manning et al., 2015). Ben-Porat et al. (2021) found that social support
significantly affected VPTG. Kang et al. (2018) found that Chinese paramedics with high
levels of social support had closer interpersonal relationships, which mitigated the
negative effects of trauma and promoted VPTG. However, there are also inconsistent
findings regarding the impact of social support on journalists’ trauma, with studies
showing that organisational support or support from family and friends does not promote
growth (Brockhouse et al., 2011). Based on the cultural differences between China and the
West as well as the industry differences, it is possible that there may be closer inter-
personal interactions in Chinese media organisations, and social support may be an
important factor for Chinese journalists.
This reasoning suggests the following hypothesis:

H6. The path between VET and STS as well as the path between STS and VPTG are
moderated by social support.

Thus, the present research focuses on Chinese emotional livelihood journalists as its
research object. It is the first study to explore how the journalists who undergo VET gain
VPTG as well as the factors that promote this mechanism.
We aim to pave the way for further research on the key factors that help promote
psychological improvement in trauma workers. We summarise our hypotheses in
Figure 1.

Method
Participants and procedure
The participants of this study are practitioners of emotional livelihood journalism. This
type of programme captures current news events that contain various emotional elements.
Journalists of such programmes often take on the roles of dispute mediators,
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Figure 1. Hypothesised theoretical model concerning the relationship between vicarious

exposure to trauma and vicarious post-traumatic growth; secondary traumatic stress as
mediator; empathy and social support as moderators.

psychological consultants, and social workers in addition to being reporters. Emotional

livelihood journalism programmes enjoyed popularity in China beginning in 2007.
However, by 2021, only 11 provincial and municipal TV stations air programmes related
to emotional livelihood journalism.
Cluster sampling was used to randomly select groups from Chinese provinces and
municipalities directly under the Central Government that had launched emotional
livelihood journalism programmes. Ultimately, the journalists and photojournalists of the
emotional livelihood journalism programmes in five provinces (i.e. Shanxi, Jiangxi,
Hunan, Guangdong, and Sichuan) and one city (i.e. Chongqing) were interviewed
through online questionnaires. All participants signed an informed consent form before
participation. The institutional review board approved the study protocol.
A total of 170 people participated in the survey; however, only 126 questionnaires
were valid. Questionnaires from reporters who did not have direct contact with the
interviewees or were not deeply involved with the interview content (e.g. cameramen for
in-studio programmes) as well as invalid samples (i.e. contradiction in the scoring of
forward and reverse questions and short answering time) were excluded. The participants
were mainly women (73%) and were aged 31 years on average (range: 24–50 years; SD =
5.4). The average length of work experience was 8.58 years (SD = 5.6), with 4.8% of the
participants having more than 20 years of experience. The demographic characteristics of
the samples are shown in Table 1.

Instruments
VET. The Journalist Trauma Exposure Scale revised by Dworznik (2008) was used to
measure journalists’ VET using 20 items. Simultaneously, borrowing from Browne et al.
(2012), the frequency scale was modified. and the open-ended response regarding the
number of times a journalist experienced a specific trauma was changed to a categorical
Xiong and Liao 9

Table 1. Demographic characteristics of the sample (N = 126).

Variables n (%)

Gender Male 34 (27%)

Female 92 (73%)
Age Under 25 7 (5.6%)
25–30 60 (47.6%)
30–40 49 (38.9%)
40 and above 10 (7.9%)
Occupation Journalist 111 (88.1%)
Photojournalist 9 (7.1%)
Journalist and photojournalist 6 (4.8%)
Years of work experience Under 5 42 (33.3%)
5–10 49 (38.9%)
10–20 29 (23%)
20 and above 6 (4.8%)
Areas Guangdong province 22 (17.5%)
Hunan province 16 (12.7%)
Jiangxi province 46 (36.5%)
Shanxi province 23 (18.3%)
Sichuan province 15 (11.9%)
Chongqing city 4 (3.2%)

choice: 0 = never, 1 = once or twice, 2 = every few months, 3 = most months, 4 = monthly,
and 5 = weekly. In the present study, the Cronbach’s alpha value for this scale was 0.86.

STS. A modified version of the Compassion Satisfaction and Fatigue Scale (CF-short)
was used to assess STS (Adams et al., 2006). The scale was modified from the original
30 items created by Figley (1995) to 13 items, which evaluated STS and burnout in
addition to testing overall compassion fatigue. This shortened version of the scale has
been shown to be reliable and valid, and the CF-short scale is highly correlated with the
original 30-item scale (Dworznik, 2008). Items were rated on a 5-point scale (0 = never;
4 = very often). In this study, the Cronbach’s alpha value of the STS subscale in the CF-
short scale was 0.92.

VPTG. Owing to the similarity between PTG and VPTG, the post-traumatic growth
inventory (PTGI) developed by Tedeschi and Calhoun (1996) is widely used to measure
VPTG using 21 items. The Chinese version of the PTGI was used in this study, which
modified the professional context and deleted an indicator with a small correlation (Wang
et al., 2011). The final scale contained 20 items rated on 6-point scale, ranging from 0 (not
at all) to 5 (extremely). The higher the score, the greater the signs of VPTG. The
Cronbach’s alpha value of the PTGI in this study was 0.97.

Empathy. The Chinese revised version of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) was
used to assess empathy (Zhang et al., 2010). The scale has 22 items assessing perspective
10 Journalism 0(0)

taking, empathy, concern, fantasy, and personal distress. Items were rated on a 5-point
Likert scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 4 (very strongly); the higher the score, the
stronger the ability to empathise. The Cronbach’s alpha value for the IRI in this study
was 0.90.

Social support. The social support rating scale revised by Xiao (1994) was used, which
was compiled according to the Chinese cultural context. There were 10 items in total
evaluating objective support, subjective support, and utilisation of social support. Scores
ranged from 12 to 79, with higher scores indicating higher social support. The Cronbach’s
alpha value for this measure was 0.78.

Data analysis
Data analyses were performed using SPSS 25.0. There were no missing data. First, the
descriptive statistics were used to describe demographic characteristics. Journalists’
gender, age, and years in the field were included as covariates. Pearson’s correlation
coefficients were calculated to verify the correlations between journalists’ demographics,
VET, STS, VPTG, empathy, and social support. Second, to test the moderated mediation
model, the PROCESS 4.0 Macro (Hayes, 2018; Model 8, Model 58) was used to confirm
STS as a mediator and empathy and social support as the moderators in the association
between VET and VPTG. Confidence intervals (CIs = 95%) were used to address the
problem of bias owing to non-normalised sampling distributions of mediating effects. The
bootstrapping sampling (n = 5000) distributions of indirect effects were produced by
drawing cases from the original sample and generating indirect effects in the resamples.
Mediating effects were considered statistically significant when confident intervals did
not contain zero (Hayes, 2018). Simple slope analysis was conducted to interpret the
moderating effects.

Results
Descriptive statistics and bivariate correlations
Table 2 presents the descriptive statistics and correlation matrix among the research
variables. VET was significantly positively correlated with STS (r = 0.49, p < 0.01), and
VPTG (r = 0.51, p < 0.01). STS was positively correlated with VPTG (r = 0.51, p < 0.01).
Age (r = 0.21, p < 0.05) and length of work experience (r = 0.26, p < 0.01) were
significantly negatively correlated with STS, confirming Hypothesis 2. However, gender
was not associated with STS. That is, the older journalists are and the more work ex-
perience they have, the milder their STS symptoms.

Moderated mediation analyses

According to the test method proposed by Hayes (2018), Model 4 of the SPSS macro
programme Process 4.0 was used to test the mediating role of STS in the relationship
 Xiong and Liao

Table 2. Descriptive statistics and correlations among study variables.

Variables M SD 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

1. Gender 1.73 0.45 —

2. Age 31.56 5.40 0.41∗∗ —
3. Years of work 8.58 5.60 0.41∗∗ 0.90∗∗ —
experience
4. VET 19.33 9.72 0.16 0.01 0.03 —
5. VPTG 55.35 22.03 0.06 0.18∗ 0.12 0.51∗∗ —
6. STS 13.89 5.10 0.06 0.21∗ 0.26∗∗ 0.49∗∗ 0.51∗∗ —
7. Empathy 54.10 14.66 0.14 0.17 0.21∗ 0.53∗∗ 0.64∗∗ 0.69∗∗ —
8. Social support 23.24 5.40 0.02 0.13 0.12 0.04 0.14 0.09 0.22∗ —
Gender was coded as 1 = male and 2 = female. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001. VET: vicarious exposure to trauma; VPTG: vicarious post-traumatic growth; STS:
secondary traumatic stress.
11
12 Journalism 0(0)

between VET and VPTG. Mediation analyses showed that VET was related to STS (B =
0.26, SE = 0.19, p < 0.001). STS, in turn, was related to VPTG (B = 1.47, SE = 0.38,
p < 0.001). The association between VET and VPTG became statistically significant (B =
0.76, SE = 0.19, p < 0.001). There were significant indirect effects from VET to VPTG via
STS (B = 0.38, Boot SE = 0.13, 95%CI [0.16, 0.65]). The proportion of the mediating
effect to the total effect was 33.3%, which indicated that STS played a partial mediating
role in the relationship between VET and VPTG. After controlling for gender, years of
work experience, and age, all mediating path coefficients remained significant. Therefore,
Hypotheses 1 and 3 were verified (see Figure 2).
Moderated mediation analyses (Process 4.0, Model 8) showed that there was a sig-
nificant interaction effect between VET and empathy on STS (B = 0.01, p = 0.01) but not
on VPTG (B = 0.001, p = 0.95). Thus, Hypothesis 4 was rejected, but Hypothesis 5 was
confirmed (see Table 2).
Simple slope analyses showed that when the level of empathy was low, the effect of
VET on STS was not significant (1 SD below mean age, Bsimple = 0.02, p = 0.76,
t = 0.31). When the level of empathy was high, the impact of VET on STS was
significant (1 SD below mean age, Bsimple = 0.02, p = 0.76, t = 0.31; see Figure 2),
with the increase being significantly larger than when the level of empathy was low.
Moderated mediation analyses (Process 4.0, Model 58) showed there was no sig-
nificant interaction between VET and social support on STS (B = 0.003, p = 0.69) or
between STS and social support on VPTG (B = 0.05, p = 0.41). Therefore, Hypothesis
6 was not verified (see Table 3).

Figure 2. Moderated mediation model showing the indirect effects of vicarious exposure to
trauma on vicarious post-traumatic growth via secondary traumatic stress. Note: Bold lines
indicate significant effects. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001. Values shown are unstandardised
coefficients. Covariates were gender, years of work experience, and age, but they are not
represented here.
Xiong and Liao 13

Table 3. Moderated mediation analysis (Model 8, Model 58).

Variables R2 F B 95%CI t
∗∗∗ ∗∗
STS Gender 0.57 26.44 2.25 [0.01, 3.80] 2.88
Age 0.02 [-0.28, 0.25] 0.14
Years of work experience 0.18 [-0.44, 0.08] 1.36
VET 0.07 [-0.01, 0.15] 1.77
Empathy 0.18∗∗∗ [0.13, 0.24] 6.63
VET × Empathy 0.01∗ [0.001, 0.011] 2.54
Gender 0.33 9.81∗∗∗ 1.18 [-3.09, 0.74] 1.22
Age 0.14 [0.41, 0.19] 0.83
Years of work experience 0.40∗ [-0.72, 0.09] 2.52
VET 0.26∗∗∗ [0.18, 0.34] 6.35
Social support 0.03 [-0.18, 0.11] 0.47
VET × Social support 0.003 [-0.01, 0.02] 0.40
VPTG Gender 0.51 17.29∗∗∗ 7.00 [-14.42, 0.52] 1.84
Age 1.96∗∗∗ [-3.20, 0.72] 3.13
Years of work experience 1.49∗ [0.27, 2.71] 2.42
VET 0.39∗∗ [0.03, 0.76] 2.11
STS 0.17 [-0.68, 1.02] 0.40
Empathy 0.81∗∗∗ [0.51, 1.11] 5.40
VET × Empathy 0.001 [-0.02, 0.02] 0.07
Gender 0.43 12.51∗∗∗ 1.13 [-8.95, 6.68] 0.29
Age 1.74 [-3.07, 0.41] 2.59
Years of work experience 1.24 [-0.07, 2.55] 1.88
VET 0.77∗∗∗ [0.40, 1.14] 4.14
STS 1.51∗∗∗ [0.78, 2.24] 4.11
Social support 0.86∗∗ [0.29, 1.43] 2.97
VET × Social support 0.05 [-0.07, 0.16] 0.82
Unstandardised coefficients (B) are presented. Gender was coded as 1 = male and 2 = female. *p < 0.05, **p <
0.01, ***p < 0.001. VET: vicarious exposure to trauma; VPTG: vicarious post-traumatic growth; STS: secondary
traumatic stress.

Discussion
This study is the first to investigate work-related trauma among emotional livelihood
journalists in China, providing a moderated mediation model among VET, STS, VPTG,
and empathy. Our findings explore how psychological trauma experienced by journalists
at work (VET) affects VPTG (via the mediation of STS). Simultaneously, our findings
reveal the conditions under which VET (the moderating effect of empathy) had a greater
predictive effect on the reporters’ STS. In line with previous research, the moderating
effect of social support was not verified. It was found that as age and years of work
experience increase, the severity of the STS symptoms decreases.
An important goal of the present study was to examine the direct and indirect rela-
tionship between vicarious trauma exposure and VPTG. First, VET had a significant
positive effect on VPTG; that is, the higher the level of vicarious trauma exposure, the
stronger the reporter’s VPTG. The high level of vicarious trauma exposure reflects the
14 Journalism 0(0)

high frequency and wide range of indirect trauma experienced by journalists as trauma
workers. According to the constructivist self-development theory, when individuals are
exposed to new information that is incompatible with their existing cognitive model, the
original cognitive model will fail or break (McCann and Pearlman, 1990), resulting in
positive or negative adaptation. Second, positive adaptation leads to growth, specifically
VPTG (Linley et al., 2005). It has also been confirmed that vicarious trauma will produce
VPTG through the effect of certain factors. Importantly, STS significantly mediated the
relationship between VET and VPTG.
Research confirms that vicarious trauma exposure has a significant effect on STS.
According to the constructivist self-development theory, journalists will negatively adapt
to traumatic experiences that challenge their preconceptions. This negative adaptation
results in psychopathology and pain, including STS (Linley et al., 2005). The greater the
exposure to vicarious trauma, the more severe the STS symptoms. Our findings revealed
that STS significantly affects VPTG, which is consistent with most previous studies. That
is, STS allows trauma workers to seek and discover positive aspects of their work, such as
re-evaluating themselves or their relationships with family and friends (Tedeschi et al.,
1998: 9–30). After the mediation effect test, it was confirmed that VET affected VPTG
through STS; that is, the higher the VET was, the more severe the STS symptoms. This
result reinforces the hypothesis that journalists on emotional livelihood journalism
programmes may experience stress and distress when interviewing clients who are
dealing with emotional issues while simultaneously gaining new insight and perceptions,
which can ultimately result in positive changes in life values. Therefore, journalists may
be indirectly exposed to traumatic events and experience a series of shocks to or de-
struction of their original values and beliefs before they can be ‘reborn’. In other words,
STS paves the way for growth (Manning et al., 2015). This means that people in hostile
situations could experience significantly more positive growth than others.
Another important finding of this study is the identification of the moderating role of
empathy. First, empathy mediated vicarious exposures to trauma and STS. When the
ability to empathise was high, VET had a greater impact on STS, indicating that excessive
empathy worsens the severity of the STS symptoms. Meanwhile, when the ability to
empathise was low, VET had no significant effect on STS. This suggests that mitigating
the severity of STS in journalists requires not only controlling the frequency and extent of
journalists’ traumatic exposure but also focusing on their ability to empathise. From the
perspective of practical work, the ability to empathise is often an important factor for
reporters to improve their professional ability, meaning that the stronger the reporters’
ability to empathise is, the more severe the STS symptoms, and the deeper the VET.
Second, the findings showed that empathy did not significantly moderate the direct
effects of VET and VPTG. This is consistent with previous reports that there is no re-
lationship between empathy and VPTG (O’Sullivan and Whelan, 2011).
Third, social support variables did not play a moderating role in the indirect effects in
this study, which is partly consistent with previous research. Williams and Cartwright
(2021) pointed out that journalists who have experienced traumatic stress also have
difficulties finding support in society, partly because the organisation itself does not
provide it. Subsequently, because the media industry emphasises professional
Xiong and Liao 15

requirements, traumatic reactions are interpreted as non-professional behaviour,

prompting traumatised people to forgo seeking social support. Accordingly, the mod-
erating effect of social support might been non-significant in the present study because the
sample’s level of social support was low.
Finally, these findings might be generalisable to the traditional journalist population as
well. In the existing research on journalist trauma, a large number of researchers focus on
journalists who report on catastrophic events (MacDonald et al., 2021). However, such
first responders (Rupar, 2020) are a minority in journalistic practice. A far greater number
of journalists are analogous to emotional livelihood journalists; that is, they are indirectly
exposed to traumatic material, and their degree of emotional involvement with these
materials varies. They may also have low symbolic capital and lack sufficient resources to
address psychological trauma. Thus, our findings may help explain the experiences of
many traditional journalists as well.

Implications
Journalists, as trauma workers, face unpredictable psychological harm, and the sus-
tainable development of news activities depends on promoting the physical and mental
health of journalists (Kotišová, 2017). Our research makes an important contribution to
this endeavour.
First, this study constructed a regulated mediation model for the first time to reveal one
of the possible pathways by which a reporter generates VPTG. STS does not have only
negative effects (Bercier and Maynard, 2014). According to our research, journalists who
face trauma in the course of their jobs can find ways to do so calmly and actively. Our
research can also help them understand that they are able to actively heal themselves and
that facing such trauma can help them to grow. This result of our empirical analysis
suggests that personal growth may be promoted in terms of reshaping personal beliefs and
world views.
Second, this paper explored the influencing factors of Chinese journalists suffering
from STS symptoms for the first time. However, the results were partially inconsistent
with the conclusions of existing studies (Dworznik, 2011, 2017; Malik et al., 2022).
Gender differences are not significant in the study of Chinese journalists’ trauma, which
may be because men in Chinese journalism tend to be the main source of family income
and bear more occupational pressure. In China, male journalists have higher levels of
occupational stress, anxiety, and depression (Wang and Yu, 2021). As occupational stress
was a significant predictor of STS in some fields (Badger et al., 2008), male journalists
also experienced different types of stress than females.
The non-significance of social support in this study may be due to the lack of training
for journalists who report on traumatic events (Seely, 2019). Most news organisations in
China have not established mental health centres for journalists. The Dart Centre for
Journalism and Trauma believes that the help of managers and colleagues plays an
important role in a journalist’s ability to cope with trauma (Smith et al., 2019). This
suggests that, in practice, media organisations can arrange tailored mental health training
for journalists (Shah et al., 2020).
16 Journalism 0(0)

Third, trauma research, which takes journalists with Chinese characteristics as the
research object, has inspired the traditional news industry to re-examine the mental health
of minority journalists, editors, photojournalists, and even peripheral actors in journalism,
such as bloggers and citizen journalists (Holton and Belair-Gagnon, 2018) and enriched
the field of research into the trauma of journalists. The study contributes to the under-
standing of mental health issues among such journalists.

Future research
First, future research should continue to explore other structural factors that influence the
relationships among STS, VET, and VPTG in journalism. Manning et al. (2015) reviewed
previous studies and pointed out that factors that promote the development of VPTG
include cognitive and psychological factors (e.g. an individual’s objective and positive
attitude, job achievement, and resilience) as well as behavioural factors (e.g. self-care
activities and personal trauma history).
Second, future trauma research in journalism needs to consider the national conditions
of each country, refer to trauma research in different fields, and continue to improve the
predictors of STS to seek to alleviate the negative impact of STS. Different occupational
characteristics of trauma workers may produce different PTG patterns (Cohen and
Collens, 2013); thus, the VPTG paths of different types of journalists should also be
explored.
Third, in the practice of journalism management, journalists and managers should pay
special attention to their mental health. Simultaneously, a focus on non-traditional news
practitioners as peripheral actors, such as bloggers and user-generated content after
indirect contact with traumatic materials (Holton and Belair-Gagnon, 2018; Tandoc Jr.,
2019) can be considered in order to expand research on traumatic subjects in journalism
and compare different types of journalistic endeavours.

Limitations
Several limitations should be noted. First, the sample included journalists working in
emotional livelihood journalism programmes, and such journalists are more likely to
display traits associated with trauma workers than other journalists. However, owing to
the massive suspension or revision of such programmes over the last 3 years, the total
number of participants decreased sharply, and their geographical distribution was uneven.
Although cluster sampling covered nearly half of the total group, participants were mainly
from the South of China. Therefore, our results may not be generalisable to all journalists
with characteristics commonly seen in trauma workers. Second, social support as a
moderating variable has yet to be verified, which may be due to the fact that Chinese
journalists share a lack of organisational support, and therefore, our sample was not
suitable for studying this variable.
Xiong and Liao 17

Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge professor Hui Wu of Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics for his
valuable guidance with this article. The authors would like to thank the editor and two anonymous
reviewers for their constructive feedback on earlier versions of this paper.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/
or publication of this article.

Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or
publication of this article: This work was supported by the Chinese National Radio and Television
Administration Foundation [GD1904]; Engineering Research Center of Cyberspace
[KJAQ202112001]; Shanghai new media experimental center of Fudan University project
[FDXW202101]; and the Philosophy and social science innovation team of Yunnan University
[CY2262420225].

ORCID iDs
Ying Xiong  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6593-9498
Shengqing Liao  https://orcid.org/0009-0003-3040-5199

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Xiong and Liao 21

Author biographies
Ying Xiong is a Lecturer at the Department of Journalism and Communication at Jiangxi
University of Finance and Economics, China. Her research focuses on health commu-
nication and journalism practices.
Sheng qing Liao is a professor of the School of Journalism at Fudan University and the
dean of the School of Journalism at Yunnan University, China. Academic interests are
computational communication, health communication, and media effects.