SLP Course RDS699B Prospectus How does military trauma affect mental health, and what role does the Wounded Warrior Project play in the recovery of veterans Module 2 - SLPRESEARCH DESIGN DEVELOPMENTSL

How does military trauma affect mental health, and what role does the Wounded Warrior Project play in the recovery of veterans

A [DOCTORAL STUDY PROJECT or DISSERTATION] Prospectus

Submitted to the [Name of College]

of Trident University International

a member of the American InterContinental University System

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Doctor of [Degree] [in Name of Program if applicable]

by

[Your First and Last Name]

Chandler, Arizona

20[23]

[Winter/Spring/Summer/Fall YYYY]

[Instructor]

List of Tables 4

List of Figures 5

Chapter 1: Introduction 6

Background 6

Problem Statement 7

Purpose Statement 7

Conceptual or Theoretical Framework 8

Research Question(s) 8

Definition of Key Terms 9

Summary 9

Chapter 2: Literature Review 11

Literature Search Strategy 11

Synthesis of the Literature 11

Summary 14

Chapter 3: Methodology 15

Research Methodology and Design 15

Role of the Researcher 15

Population and Sample Selection 15

Instrumentation 16

Variables and Operational Definitions [quantitative and mixed methods studies only] 18

Demographics and Control Variables [quantitative and mixed methods studies only] 19

Data Collection 20

Data Analysis 20

Assumptions 21

Limitations 21

Delimitations 21

Reliability and Validity 21

Ethical Assurances 22

Summary 22

References 23

Appendix A 24

Table 1 13

Table 2 17

Table 3 19

[Create your List of Tables page by using the “References” feature in Word.

1. First, you must be sure that you have added captions to all tables. To add captions, select the table first, then, on the “References” tab, in the “Captions” group, click “Insert Caption.” For tables, select the “tables” label.

2. Once you are sure all tables have captions, on the “References” tab, in the “Captions” group, click “Insert Table of Figures.” Word will then automatically list all tables that you have captioned in your document.

3. To update the list, select the text in the list of tables and click “Update Table,” and then press F9.

The list of tables presented here is an example and should be replaced with your own tables listed. Consult the APA manual to ensure that all tables and table titles, figures, and figure captions conform to APA format.] 

Figure 1 13

[Create your List of Figures page by using the “References” feature in Word.

1. First, you must be sure that you have added captions to all figures. To add captions, select the figure first, then, on the “References” tab, in the “Captions” group, click “Insert Caption.” For figures, select the “figures” label.

2. Once you are sure all figures have captions, on the “References” tab, in the “Captions” group, click “Insert Table of Figures.” Word will then automatically list all figures that you have captioned in your document.

3. To update the list, select the text in the list of figures and click “Update Table,” and then press F9.

The list of figures presented here is an example and should be replaced with your own figures listed. Consult the APA manual to ensure that all tables and table titles, figures, and figure captions conform to APA format.] 

The people serving in the army are exposed to numerous challenges affecting their emotional, physical and mental health. The stress arises from issues like physical injuries and deployment stress, thus abandoning families, leading to post-traumatic stress disorder. By developing a study to understand such health issues, we will help veterans to solve depression, anxiety and PTSD. Necessary resources and support will be developed to help them transition to civilian life.

The WWP (Wounded Warriors Program) was developed in 2003 to help soldiers switch to civilian life to cope with mental changes. The organization has diverse services and programs to help veterans recover effectively. WWP recognizes mental health problems are caused by threats of danger in service, separation from families and lengths of deployment. This program is an honor for the service provided to help in rehabilitation.

Mental health among veterans is affected adversely due to the length of service and experiences. For example, soldiers serving during the 9/11 attack in Afghanistan and Iran are constantly exposed to danger. This affects their mental health, leading to substance abuse, depression and anxiety. The PTSD impacts have long-term effects and significantly affect one’s quality of life. The WWP is dedicated to ensuring career counselling, physical rehabilitation and other support services to effectively integrate with society.

The problem being addressed by this study is understanding the gap between service in the military, mental health concerns that arise and how agencies like the WWP help in transitioning from military life. Although there is existing literature on the impacts of military service on soldiers, the world is dynamic, leading to shifts in traditional problems. Previous researchers have only covered the mental health issue among soldiers but not the role of support organizations. This study will cover this gap considering increasing conflicts, especially in the Middle Eastern region, and its impacts on the soldiers.

The reason for this paper is to understand the mental impacts of experiences in the military and the roles of support organizations like the WWP and soldiers transitioning to civilian life. The literature to be filled by the study includes the importance of veterans support organizations, improvement of mental health and some military trauma soldiers are exposed to by using mixed methods, like qualitative and quantitative methods, to understand the prevalence and magnitude of mental health issues. The study will inform various stakeholders like lawmakers, support agencies, and mental health assistants to develop measures that eliminate mental health issues.

The Biopsychosocial model will be the basis of this study’s conceptual framework since it insists that personal health is affected by factors like society, psychological and biological. Such factors are related to service in the military and the development of mental health issues. Some biological factors include brain injuries and response to stress and trauma during military service that lead to impacts on the psychological systems.

The psychological factors in the biopsychosocial include anxiety, depression and stress; when warriors feel that they are constantly exposed to danger that may terminate their lives, the psychological factors lead to warriors developing coping mechanisms and emotional responses during the service. In comparison, the social factors are related to the limited access to mental health services and stigma after soldiers leave service. Through support organizations, soldiers can effectively cope with the transition and avoid the negative impacts.

RQ1. How is the soldier’s mental health affected by their service in the military, and what is the role of organizations like WWP in the recovery process?

RQ2. What are the individual experiences of veterans who have sought services from organizations like WWP?

RQ3. What are some programs that WWP provides that help in reducing mental health concerns?

Military injuries: these are the stressors and injuries, including physical and psychological, that people in the armed forces are exposed to. They include long deployments, intense moments and being exposed to combat.

Veterans: they are people who have been involved in the military service, although they have retired and are transitioning to civilian life.

Biopsychosocial model: it’s an approach that considers connectivity between social, psychological and biological factors and their impacts on individuals.

WWP (Wounded Warrior Project): it is a non-profit organization that has services and programs to help veterans transition into civilian life. They provide counselling on mental health and physical health to the families and veterans.

For this chapter, we have analyzed some essential elements relating to the mental health of veterans as they transition to civilian life. The problem statement gives the gap between long-term mental health impacts and the responsibilities of agencies like WWP in fostering recovery. The biopsychosocial model is the conceptual framework which provides a multifaceted approach to dealing with mental health issues among soldiers.

Clear and precise research questions seeking to understand the relationships between military trauma, mental health and the role of support organizations have been formulated. These questions will inform the study about this gap and relevant measures to support veterans. In the next chapter, we will develop the methodological approach, including data analytics methods, research design and data collection.

[For sufficient depth, Chapter 2 must be a minimum of 30 pages in length and fully support the theoretical and conceptual development of your study as you develop your full proposal. For the prospectus, you are aiming to develop approximately ten pages complete by the end of module 2 and 20 pages by the end of module 4. In this introductory paragraph, provide an overview of the general topic and general research question(s) to establish the context of the study and orient the reader to the field.]

[Describe the library and search engine sources and search terms. Rely on literature from the last five years when possible. 50% or more of references should be recent and peer reviewed. These are guidelines, but the topic selected, and your study design should drive this and should be discussed with your instructor.]

[The body of your literature review must address these topics: theoretical orientation, conceptual framework, and a synthesis of what is known about your topic and research problem. Your review should be organized using sub-headings (APA heading levels 3, 4, and 5) to organize the narrative in this and each section that follows in chapter 2. Discuss in depth any foundational studies that inform your study including methodology, design, sample size, and study recommendations. The order in which you present your synthesis, theoretical orientation, and conceptual framework should be discussed with your instructor. Additional resources related to writing literature reviews are provided at the end of this section.

If completing a quantitative or mixed methods study, be sure you include a hypothesis development section and description of your research model. Develop a diagram of your model and a table relating the research questions to the relevant hypotheses (quantitative and mixed methods studies only). An example figure and table are included below.]

Literature review resources available in the Trident Library:

• Oliver, P. (2012). Succeeding with your literature review. McGraw-Hill Education.

• Bootee, D. N., & Beile, P. (2005). Scholars before researchers: On the centrality of the dissertation literature review in research preparation. Educational Researcher, 34(6), 3-15. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X034006003]

Figure 1

Research Model

Table 1

Table of Hypotheses

[Note about the use of published images, figures and/or tables: If published images, figures, and/or tables are presented in chapter 2 or any other section of your manuscript, you must obtain permission from the copyright holder. Personal and Fair Use in the case of dissertations and DSPs does not apply.]

[Summarize relevant and significant points of the chapter. Provide a scholarly transition to the next chapter.]

[Restate the problem statement and purpose verbatim in this introduction. Give a brief narrative description of the research model. Provide a succinct overview of the contents of Chapter 3 that clearly identifies the research methodology and design in a single statement.]

[In your first paragraph, briefly describe the research methodology selected. Include a brief justification for why you selected the methodology with supporting citations. Identify alternative methodologies and include a statement about why the selected method was determined to be more appropriate than other methods.

In your second paragraph, briefly describe the research design selected. Include a brief justification for why you selected the design with supporting citations. Identify alternative designs and include a statement about why the selected design was determined to be more appropriate than other designs.]

[Explain your role as researcher and any relationships that may exist with the participants or organizations under study.]

[What is the overall population of interest? Within that population, who will be your participants (sample)? Will you have any subgroups, and if so what criteria will be used to establish these groups? Specify the number of participants required and use a power analysis tool to determine the appropriate sample and effect size for quantitative and mixed methods studies. Include evidence of this analysis in your appendix. How will you recruit the sample? Explain any permissions required. If applicable, explain how consent will be secured.]

[Describe any archived data or other secondary data and include a description of how the data were originally collected and for what purpose along with information regarding validity and reliability. Describe any published instruments (tests, questionnaires, observation procedures) that will be used, including information on their origin, evidence of their reliability and validity, and your rationale for selection. Describe in detail any materials (including survey/instruments, field testing or pilot testing of instruments) and include their results and any subsequent modifications. Describe interview protocols including a description of how the interview questions were developed with appropriate qualitative research method support. Adequately describe any apparatus including the model/make, how it is used, and outcome(s) it provides. Use an instrument matrix table to summarize your selections (example table follows). Show and include evidence that permission was granted to use the instrument(s) in the appendix.

Table 2

Instruments Matrix

Note. This table includes examples. Replace content with specifics related to your study and remove the instructional text.

For quantitative studies, instrument self-development is strongly discouraged owing to the amount of time and skills that are required to create a valid and reliable instrument. For qualitative studies, the use of newly developed and literature-based interview protocols is more common and acceptable. Describe the development process in detail followed by the field-testing procedures used and consequent modifications that were made.]

Pilot Study / Field Testing [if applicable]

[Briefly describe any planned pilot study and its purpose. The normal purpose is to verify the readability and clarity of your survey using a small group of test participants known to you, not the actual study participants.]

[Operational definitions are dissimilar from the conceptual definitions that are provided in the Definition of Terms section of Chapter 1. Note that operational definitions specify how the variables will be measured. Use subheadings for each variable. Provide the source and reliability of each scale. Make sure you include every variable used in your hypotheses.

A Table of Variables (see example) is required at the end of this section which defines each variable based on type, the Level of Measure, and role in the analysis (independent variable, dependent variable, and covariates).]

[First Variable. (Define it, how you going to operationalize, how are you going to measure it, where did you get the scale, what was its reliability)]

[Second Variable. (Define it, how you going to operationalize, how are you going to measure it, where did you get the scale, what was its reliability)]

[List each demographic/control variable you plan to collect along with a brief justification for collecting it (if you plan to use the demographic as a hypothesized covariant it should appear in the Variables and Operational Definitions section).]

Table 3

Summary of Variables

Note: LoM = level of measurement, DV = dependent variable, IV = independent variable.   

[Describe your data collection plan. Be as specific as possible as to how you will collect primary data for your chosen sample. Confidentiality and privacy should be discussed as well. If you are using secondary data, include a description of how the data were originally collected and for what purpose along with information regarding validity and reliability, or face validity, as appropriate.]

[In this section, describe in a step-by-step manner how data will be prepared and analyzed. Give a good description of how your will clean data, code (if applicable), test for validity and reliability, and how you will test the hypotheses, if appliable (regression, SEM, etc.). If your study is quantitative or mixed methods, be sure to refer to the Standards of Statistical Analysis and Presentation of Results document in the Research and Doctoral Studies Libguide for your planned research statistical method in completing this section. Also discuss how you plan to test for control variable interaction (if applicable). If using software to assist in your analysis (e.g. SPSS, MAXQDA) identify it in this section.]

[Insert statistical analysis table here (refer to the Standards of Statistical Analysis and Presentation of Results document in the Research and Doctoral Studies Libguide for examples).]

[Discuss the assumptions about the study population and design along with the corresponding rationale and support underlying them. If your study is quantitative or mixed methods you must list the assumptions for each statistical test. If you plan to use parametric tests, be sure to describe the non-parametric alternatives you will use if you fail to meet the parametric assumptions.]

[Describe the study limitations (potential weaknesses to interpretation and validity) within the context of the study design. Discuss the measures that were taken to mitigate these limitations. Detail the methods/strategy used to address missing data, nonresponse rates, participant honesty, etc. Review any potential threats to validity (specific to the study design) and how they will be addressed to the extent possible.]

[Discuss the scope of data used in the study and describe the study delimitations along with the corresponding rationale underlying them. Explain how these delimitations (research decisions) relate to the existing literature and theoretical/conceptual framework, problem statement, and research questions.]

[Describe the strategies you’ll use to establish reliability and validity for your study as a whole. If you have qualitative elements in your study, how will you establish credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability? For all studies, be sure to address any issues related to bias.]

[Discuss compliance with the ethical standards for conducting research as appropriate to the proposed research design including sufficient information on protection for human subjects. Describe the informed consent procedures and how confidentiality of the participants will be maintained. If the risk to participants is greater than minimal, discuss the relevant ethical issues and how they will be addressed. Identify how the data will be securely stored in accordance with IRB requirements as appropriate. Describe the role of the researcher in the study. Discuss relevant issues, including biases as well as personal and professional experiences with the topic, problem, or context. Present the strategies that will be used to prevent these biases and experiences from influencing the analysis or findings. Describe how you will obtain ethical assurances for formal IRB approval of the study. Compose a confirmation statement that the study will receive Institutional Review Board approval from Trident University International prior to data collection.]

[Summarize relevant and significant points of the chapter. Provide a scholarly transition to the next chapter.]

[List all references cited in the manuscript. Order the list of references alphabetically by author. Use a 0.5 inch hanging indent and double-space. Format the references to current APA guidelines, providing DOI information where available (with live links). Examples are included below.

Boote, D. N., & Beile, P. (2005). Scholars before researchers: On the centrality of the dissertation literature review in research preparation. Educational Researcher, 34(6), 3-15. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X034006003

Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50. https://doi.org/10.2307/3151312

Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115-135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8

Oliver, P. (2012). Succeeding with your literature review. McGraw-Hill Education.]

[Appendices should be presented in the order they are referenced in the body of the prospectus manuscript. At a minimum, the appendices should include:

• Power analysis evidence if used to determine sample size

• Relevant site permission(s) OR copies of site permission requests

• Relevant recruitment letter(s)

• Informed consent letter(s)

• Copies of instruments

• Evidence of permission to use or adapt published instruments (if required)

• IRB training (CITI) certificate

Note: Each appendix item should be listed with a new appendix letter in alphabetical order: Appendix A, B, C…]