Preliminary long-term health outcomes associated with recreation-based health and wellness programs for injured service members

Townsend, Jasmine; Hawkins, Brent L.; Bennett, Jessie L.; Hoffman, Jamie; Martin, Tamar P.; Sotherden, Elaine; Bridges, William B.

doi:10.1080/23311908.2018.1444330

Cited by 21 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Multiple psychological and physical benefits along with opportunities to socialise with fellow veterans and civilians have been identified. These findings are consistent with previous research demonstrating an immediate positive impact on veterans' subjective well-being after participation in alternative activities [36,37], but also identified improvements in psychological symptoms, which were sustained over time [38].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Extreme sport as an intervention for physically injured military veterans: the example of competitive motorsport

Serfioti

Hunt

2021

Disability and Rehabilitation

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Purpose: Physically or psychologically injured military veterans are motivated and benefited by physical activity or sport that may involve high levels of achievement. The aim of this study was to provide an indepth insight into the impact of Competitive Motorsport (CM) on physically injured/disabled veterans' subjective well-being and in turn determine if it improves the quality of their lives. Methods: This is a qualitative study. Two sets of semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 male British military veterans including a 6-month follow-up. All participants were subjected to a permanent, moderate or severe, physical injury/disability. Data were analysed in accordance with the principles of Thematic Analysis. Results/Conclusions: Five key elements (familiar environment, team spirit, adrenaline rush, competition and equality) made CM a unique experience for physically injured/disabled veterans. Various psychological and physical benefits were found, including an increased sense of accomplishment, opportunity to socialise in a non-clinical environment, embracement of body image and adoption of a healthier lifestyle. Since physical activity and sport are among growing research on alternative interventions for military veterans, they deserve serious consideration as part of the treatment regimens and rehabilitation programmes to improve physically inured/disabled veterans' physical and mental health.Competitive Motorsport is an effective means of improving physical health and subjective well-being of physically injured/disabled military veterans. Multiple perceived psychological and physical benefits were identified over time, including motivation for living, embracement of body image and adoption of a healthier lifestyle. Competitive Motorsport deserves consideration as part of the treatment regimens and rehabilitation programmes to improve physically injured/disabled veterans' physical and mental health while facilitating transition to civilian life.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Extreme sport as an intervention for physically injured military veterans: the example of competitive motorsport

Serfioti

Hunt

2021

Disability and Rehabilitation

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“…Although these results are promising and highlight the short-term benefits, a further understanding of their impact on the long-term day-to-day life of military personnel is still needed. Indeed, from the 13 studies reviewed [8], only one included paper [9] assessed the participants six months after participating in a programme. Considering that reintegration in a civilian society is a well-known challenge for military personnel [3,6,7], understanding the long-term impact of sports programmes on day-to-day life and wellbeing seems to be a research priority.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of an Outdoor and Adventure Sports Course on the Wellbeing of Recovering UK Military Personnel: An Exploratory Study

Kaiseler

Kay

McKenna

2019

Sports

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UK military personnel have faced increased demands over the last three decades; these have affected their wellbeing and caused multiple physical and mental health problems. Currently, bespoke rehabilitation systems may recommend participation in sports programmes. Although research attention has been drawn to the short-term positive effects of these programmes, their long-term impact on psychological wellbeing is unknown. To address this gap, the current study explored the long-term impact of a sports programme on UK military personnel’s ability to make changes in their day-to-day life through the lens of psychological wellbeing. For this purpose, UK military personnel (n = 97) completed an online survey aiming to provide a quantitative and qualitative picture of their experiences of an outdoor and adventure sports programme, underpinned by the basic psychological needs theory, six months following completion. Findings suggest that 75% of respondents found that the course was useful for facilitating adaptive changes. Content analysis suggests that elements of the course seem to satisfy their basic psychological needs of competence, relatedness and autonomy. Activities initiated six months after the course are mostly aligned with improved psychological wellbeing. Useful theoretical and applied implications are discussed.

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“…Evidence from this evolving literature to date suggests that interventions that incorporate these three elements have had some success in demonstrating statistically significant pre-to post-intervention changes in PTSD symptomology [29,32,36,[39][40][41] and depression [29,32,36,39,41,42]. However, few studies followed up post-intervention [e.g.…”

Section: An Alternative Approach: Outdoor Recreation Experiencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous research has explored a multitude of recreational activities, many provided in rather exotic and stunning locations far from participants' homes, such as Green River Utah or the Appalachian Trail [e.g. 36,40,[42][43][44]. We developed and tested an intervention that could be delivered close to veterans' homes and represent minimal practical access difficulties to veterans.…”

Section: The Present Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Outdoor recreational activity experiences improve psychological wellbeing of military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder: Positive findings from a pilot study and a randomised controlled trial

et al. 2020

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Exposure to the natural environment is increasingly considered to benefit psychological health. Recent reports in the literature also suggest that outdoor exposure that includes recreational pursuits such as surfing or fishing coupled with opportunities for social interaction with peers may be beneficial to Armed Forces Veterans experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Two studies were conducted to evaluate this possibility. In particular, these studies aimed to test the hypothesis that a brief group outdoor activity would decrease participants’ symptoms as assessed by established measures of PTSD, depression, anxiety and perceived stress, and increase participants’ sense of general social functioning and psychological growth. Experiment one employed a repeated measures design in which UK men and women military veterans with PTSD (N = 30) participated in a group outdoor activity (angling, equine care, or archery and falconry combined). Psychological measures were taken at 2 weeks prior, 2 weeks post, and at 4 month follow up. We obtained a significant within participant main effect indicating significant reduction in PTSD symptoms. Experiment two was a waitlist controlled randomised experiment employing an angling experience (N = 18) and 2 week follow up. In experiment 2 the predicted interaction of Group (Experimental vs. Waitlist Control) X Time (2 weeks pre vs. 2 weeks post) was obtained indicating that the experience resulted in significant reduction in PTSD symptoms relative to waitlist controls. The effect size was large. Additional analyses confirmed that the observed effects might also be considered clinically significant and reliable. In sum, peer outdoor experiences are beneficial and offer potential to complement existing provision for military veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Trial registration The authors confirm that all ongoing and related trials for this intervention are registered. The studies reported in this manuscript are registered as clinical trials at ISRCTN: Pilot ID– ISRCTN15325073 RCT ID– ISRCTN59395217

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Preliminary long-term health outcomes associated with recreation-based health and wellness programs for injured service members

Cited by 21 publications

References 27 publications

Extreme sport as an intervention for physically injured military veterans: the example of competitive motorsport

Extreme sport as an intervention for physically injured military veterans: the example of competitive motorsport

The Impact of an Outdoor and Adventure Sports Course on the Wellbeing of Recovering UK Military Personnel: An Exploratory Study

Outdoor recreational activity experiences improve psychological wellbeing of military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder: Positive findings from a pilot study and a randomised controlled trial

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