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- Title
- Role of Sleep in Exposure Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in OIF/OEF Combat Veterans.
- Creator
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Mesa, Franklin, Beidel, Deborah, Neer, Sandra, Bowers, Clint, Ni, Liqiang, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Exposure therapy is theorized to reduce posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology by promoting habituation/extinction of fear responses to trauma-related cues. Empirical evidence indicates that emotional memory, including habituation/extinction learning, is enhanced by sleep. However, service members with combat-related PTSD often report disturbed sleep. In this study, quality of sleep and indicators of extinction learning were examined in veterans of recent wars who had completed...
Show moreExposure therapy is theorized to reduce posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology by promoting habituation/extinction of fear responses to trauma-related cues. Empirical evidence indicates that emotional memory, including habituation/extinction learning, is enhanced by sleep. However, service members with combat-related PTSD often report disturbed sleep. In this study, quality of sleep and indicators of extinction learning were examined in veterans of recent wars who had completed an exposure-based PTSD intervention. Fifty-five participants were categorized into two groups based on self-reported quality of sleep: low sleep disruption severity (LSDS; N = 29) and high sleep disruption severity (HSDS; N = 26). Participants in the LSDS group exhibited faster habituation to their traumatic memories and reported less PTSD symptomatology during and following treatment relative to participants in the HSDS group. These findings indicate that individuals with combat-related PTSD reporting less disturbed sleep experience greater extinction learning during exposure therapy. Thus, incorporating interventions that target PTSD-related sleep disturbances may be one way to maximize exposure therapy outcomes in service members with PTSD.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2016
- Identifier
- CFE0006355, ucf:51520
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006355
- Title
- Escape Artist.
- Creator
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Mujica, Alejandro, Rushin, Patrick, Bartkevicius, Jocelyn, Neal, Mary, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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My thesis, Escape Artist, is a composite novel written as a fictitious memoir, similar in style to Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, that describes my experiences between the years 2001 and 2011. During that time I went through Marine Corps Boot Camp, became a military police officer, patrolled Yuma, AZ, was sent to Iraq for a seven-month tour as a security detail just before the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and made it back home four years later. The novel also looks into my...
Show moreMy thesis, Escape Artist, is a composite novel written as a fictitious memoir, similar in style to Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, that describes my experiences between the years 2001 and 2011. During that time I went through Marine Corps Boot Camp, became a military police officer, patrolled Yuma, AZ, was sent to Iraq for a seven-month tour as a security detail just before the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and made it back home four years later. The novel also looks into my struggles with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms, how they affected the people around me, and what I've been trying to do to remedy them (or ignore them).
Show less - Date Issued
- 2012
- Identifier
- CFE0004788, ucf:49732
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004788
- Title
- Childhood Predictors in the Severity of Combat Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Veterans with Combat Related Exposure.
- Creator
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Bermes, Michael, Abel, Eileen, Burg, Mary, Steen, Julie, Johnson, Ann, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Emerging research suggests that childhood adversities may increase both the risk and symptomology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in our veteran population. Over 40% of our reintegrating military veterans return with significant mental health issues led by combat-related PTSD. PTSD impacts veterans in numerous areas including unemployment, increased criminal justice involvement, increased treatment costs, divorce, co-morbid mental illness, greater levels of domestic violence,...
Show moreEmerging research suggests that childhood adversities may increase both the risk and symptomology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in our veteran population. Over 40% of our reintegrating military veterans return with significant mental health issues led by combat-related PTSD. PTSD impacts veterans in numerous areas including unemployment, increased criminal justice involvement, increased treatment costs, divorce, co-morbid mental illness, greater levels of domestic violence, homelessness, high college dropout rates, suicide, and long term health problems. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of childhood adversities (abuse, neglect, and poverty) upon the severity of combat-related PTSD in veteran populations. Specifically, the researcher examines the direct effects of: (1) childhood trauma; (2) childhood neglect; and (3) childhood poverty (as assessed based on socioeconomic status [SES]) upon the severity of combat-related PTSD. This study of student veterans (n=102) receiving services from a veteran service center at a major metropolitan university in Central Florida is a non-experimental, explanatory, retrospective survey design using structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the relationships among study variables. Findings strongly supported a relationship between childhood trauma and neglect and the severity of combat-related PTSD. Similarly, findings also supported that no relationship existed between childhood SES and the severity of combat-related PTSD. Both childhood trauma and neglect were significantly associated with combat-related PTSD at an even greater effect than that of combat exposure. SES was not found to be significant in the severity of combat-related PTSD. The findings suggest that preventive screening policies to reduce costs and severity of combat-related PTSD might be needed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2013
- Identifier
- CFE0004815, ucf:49739
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004815
- Title
- A comparison of final grade outcomes of veterans enrolled in English I through online and face-to-face instructional modalities at a public four-year college.
- Creator
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Hoke, Thomas, Taylor, Rosemarye, Cox, Dr. Thomas, Baldwin, Lee, Marshall, Nancy, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Since the passing of the first GI Bill in 1945, the community college, now two-and-four-year college, has provided access to veterans in pursuit of postsecondary education. As the college system has grown and expanded during the second half of the 20th Century, online learning has become increasingly important to the development of four-year colleges. Research into online learning has yet to reach an agreement on its effectiveness compared to traditional face-to-face instruction. Additionally...
Show moreSince the passing of the first GI Bill in 1945, the community college, now two-and-four-year college, has provided access to veterans in pursuit of postsecondary education. As the college system has grown and expanded during the second half of the 20th Century, online learning has become increasingly important to the development of four-year colleges. Research into online learning has yet to reach an agreement on its effectiveness compared to traditional face-to-face instruction. Additionally, little research into the academic outcomes of veterans taking courses through use of the online instructional modality has been conducted. To address this gap, the current study used the Theory of Student Integration (Tinto, 1975) and three research questions to explore these gaps. A quasi-experimental design was applied to investigate three research questions: (a) how do the academic outcomes of veterans, as measured by final grades, of veterans enrolled in an online version of English I (ENC 1101), compare with veterans enrolled in a face-to-face version of the same course with and without consideration of gender? (b) How do the academic outcomes, as measured by final grades, of veterans compare to nonveterans in both online and face-to-face versions of the course English I (ENC 1101) with and without consideration of gender? (c) What ability, if any, do instructional modality, veteran status, and age have in predicting final grade outcomes in the course English I (ENC 1101)? Archival data were gathered from a public, four-year state college in Florida of final grade outcomes and student demographics for course ENC 1101 for academic years 2012-2013, 2013-2014, and 2014-2015. Demographic data included: (a) age, (b) veteran status, (c) gender, and (d) instructional modality. Participants examined for this study were veteran and nonveterans enrolled in the course English I (ENC 1101) in two instructional modalities: online (n = 2,080) and face-to-face (n = 17,415). Additionally, participants were examined as groups of veterans (n = 544) and nonveterans (n = 18,951). Quantitative analysis utilizing independent samples t-tests of the archival data revealed that veterans earned statistically significant different final grade outcomes between the two instructional modalities t(55.65) = 2.18, p = .03. Veterans enrolled in the face-to-face version of ENC 1101 performed significantly better (M = 2.44, SD = 1.48) compared to veterans in the online version (M = 1.90, SD = 1.67). No significant differences were found when comparing final grade outcomes within gender across instructional modalities. Independent samples t-tests of the data revealed no statistically significant differences between the final grade outcomes of veterans and nonveterans within the face-to-face, t(17,413) = 0.25, p = .80, or online instructional modality, t(2.078) = 0.94, p = 0.35. Statistically significant differences were found between male veterans and nonveterans within the face-to-face modality, t(8,086) = -2.56, p = .01. Male veterans in the face-to-face instructional modality had statistically significant higher final grade outcomes (M = 2.48, SD = 1.47) compared to male nonveterans (M = 2.28, SD = 1.48). Additionally, statistically significant differences between female veterans and nonveterans within the face-to-face instructional modality were found, t(9,138) = 2.16, p = .03. The final grade outcomes of female nonveterans were significantly higher (M = 2.60, SD = 1.46) than those of female veterans (M = 2.30, SD = 1.50) in the face-to-face modality. No statistically significant differences were comparing the final grade outcomes from the online modality of veterans and nonveterans by gender.Multiple linear regressions were used to determine what relationship age, veteran status, and instructional modality had on final grade outcome. Analysis revealed that age and instructional modality were statistically significant in predicting final grade outcome, while veteran status was not, F(3, 19,491) = 85.07, p (<) .001. The model predicts that older students will earn higher final grade outcomes than younger student in the face-to-face instructional modality regardless of veteran status.Throughout the 20th and 21st Centuries, the four-year college has continued to grow in both number and program offerings. This growth has helped the four-year college to remain a leading source of postsecondary educational opportunities for veterans. With the development of online learning technology in the late 20th Century, four-year colleges have utilized this new technology to provide opportunities to larger groups of students than they had previously been able to reach. However, the effectiveness of this instructional modality has yet to be fully ascertained when compared to face-to-face instruction, especially for veterans, a population that has demonstrated at-risk characteristics (Kasworm, 2005). The findings of this study provide implications for four-year college administrators, instructors, and educational researchers to continue working to support veterans as they enter higher education.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2017
- Identifier
- CFE0006602, ucf:51280
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006602