Changes in Psychiatric Symptoms and Psychological Processes Among Veterans Participating in a Therapeutic Adventure Program

Changes in Psychiatric Symptoms and Psychological Processes Among Veterans Participating in a Therapeutic Adventure Program

When veterans need effective mental health treatment, many are reluctant to engage in traditional treatment modalities because of stigma. Therapeutic adventure shows promise as a way to engage veterans and enact positive changes in functioning, but little is known about how therapeutic adventure imp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychological services Vol. 16; no. 4; pp. 525 - 534
Main Authors: Bettmann, Joanna E., Scheinfeld, David E., Prince, Kort C., Garland, Eric L., Ovrom, Katherine V.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Educational Publishing Foundation 01-11-2019
American Psychological Association
Subjects:
Adult
Adventure Therapy
Armed forces
Combined Modality Therapy
Confidence
Exercise Therapy - methods
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Health behavior
Help seeking behavior
Human
Humans
Life satisfaction
Male
Mental disorders
Mental Disorders - therapy
Mental Health
Mental Health Programs
Mental health services
Middle Aged
Military Veterans
Mountaineering
Outcome Assessment, Health Care
Personal development
Professional attitudes
Psychiatric Symptoms
Psychological development
Psychological mindedness
Psychological processes
Psychotherapy, Group - methods
Purpose in life
Self expression
Stigma
Symptoms
Traditional medicine
Treatment needs
United States
Variance analysis
Veterans
Young Adult
United States
veterans
therapeutic adventure
adventure therapy
mental health
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Summary:When veterans need effective mental health treatment, many are reluctant to engage in traditional treatment modalities because of stigma. Therapeutic adventure shows promise as a way to engage veterans and enact positive changes in functioning, but little is known about how therapeutic adventure impacts mental health symptoms among veterans. This study examined changes in mental health symptoms and related psychological processes over the course of a 6-day Outward Bound for Veterans (OB4V) program and at a 1-month follow-up. This study examined data from 77 U.S. military veterans with psychiatric diagnoses. The authors hypothesized that participants would report significant reductions in mental health symptoms over the course of the program and following its completion, as well as significant improvements in psychological processes that included initiative for psychological growth, psychological attitudes, attitudes toward help-seeking, psychological mindedness, and emotional suppression. A repeated-measures analysis of variance was performed on each of the dependent variables. Results showed that, from pre- to postprogram, participants reported significant improvement in life purpose satisfaction and self-confidence during stressful situations. Further, from preprogram to 1-month postprogram, veterans reported increased psychological mindedness, increased engagement to promote personal growth, decreased mental health symptomology, decreased emotional suppression, and an increase in positive attitude toward seeking professional psychological help. These improvements were significant during the OB4V program and even continued to improve after the program ended, showing the promise of therapeutic adventure as a modality to address veterans' mental health issues.
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ISSN:1541-1559
1939-148X
DOI:10.1037/ser0000213