Veterans experience significant challenges in adjusting to civilian life because they have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Traumatic experiences such as near-death experience, gruesome injuries, and torture expose them to the symptoms of PTSD. The lack of effective treatment solutions that alleviate the symptoms of PTSD makes it a major mental health problem (Johnson et al., 2018). The proposed study explores the effectiveness of equine-assisted therapy in alleviating the symptoms of PTSD among veterans. The research study will be guided by the following research question: Does equine assisted therapy among military veterans alleviate the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
Though the sample will be selected from a hospital contracted by the department of veteran’s affairs, purposive sampling will be used to select participants for the study. Purposive sampling is a technique that involves choosing the sample based on the characteristics of the population under study and the purpose of the study ( Ray, 2012) . Purposive sampling is suitable when a study is targeting a specific population and sampling for proportionality is not a major concern ( Ray, 2012) . Therefore, purposive sampling is suitable for the current study because the objective is to explore the efficacy of equine-assisted therapy in managing the symptoms of PTSD. The target sample possesses specific characteristics such as being a former member of the armed forces and authorized to take part in the study by the VA’s psychologist. This sample is specific in that is has certain characteristics that reflect the population identified in the research problem. Furthermore, the study will examine the effectiveness of equine-assisted therapy; therefore, proportionality will not be necessary.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The research sample is appropriate for the study because it has the desired characteristics of the population under study. The sample size in the purposive sample is usually small because it is difficult to get a large sample with the desired characteristics. However, since the research sample has the desired characteristics, it is suitable for the study. The Findings may be generalized to active servicemen who may have experienced traumatic events. Active servicemen share the same characteristics as the study’s research sample. A significant limitation in generalizability is the characteristics of the research sample. Since the research sample is made up of veterans, the research findings may not be generalizable to other populations outside the military (Earles, Vernon, & Yetz, 2015). The sample sought specific criteria that the broader population lacks; therefore, the findings cannot be applied to individuals who have not taken part in military combat.
The research design that will be used in the study is non-controlled longitudinal design. The use of a non-controlled design is informed by the purpose of the study, which is to test the efficacy of equine-assisted therapy. Therefore, assigning some participants will be unnecessary. Additionally, a longitudinal research design will facilitate the tracking of research participants over a certain period of time to determine whether the intervention is working or not ( Ray, 2012) . Psychometric measures will be implemented before and at the end of the intervention, and during a three-month follow-up. Evaluating participants during this three time-period will enable the researchers to determine the intervention was effective or not. Thus, the research design flows from the proposed problem, theoretical framework, literature review, and hypothesis. Equine-assisted therapy will enable the participants to learn new behaviours and reflect on how their past behaviors contributed to the symptoms of PTSD. Thus, a non-controlled longitudinal study will serve the purpose of the study.
References
Earles, J. L., Vernon, L. L., & Yetz, J. P. (2015). Equine ‐ assisted therapy for anxiety and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Journal of traumatic stress, 28 (2), 149-152.
Johnson, R. A., Albright, D. L., Marzolf, J. R., Bibbo, J. L., Yaglom, H. D., Crowder, S. M., & Osterlind, S. (2018). Effects of therapeutic horseback riding on post-traumatic stress disorder in military veterans. Military medical research, 5 (1), 3.
Ray, A. (2012). The Methodoloy of Sampling and Purposive Sampling . Munich: GRIN Verlag.
