The Potential Consequences of an Untreated Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

The relevance of ethics in research cannot be overstated. This is more so the case given the need to ensure that all researchers do not deviate from key social and moral values. My research interest has got to do with the potential consequences of an untreated post-traumatic stress disorder. Various studies have in the past sought to assess how untreated post-traumatic disorder affects those suffering from the same. One such study, titled Consequences of Untreated Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Following War in Former Yugoslavia: Morbidity, Subjective Quality of Life, and Care Costs, seeks to “assess long-term mental health outcomes in people who suffer from war-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but do not receive appropriate treatment” (Priebe et al., 2009). One of the ethical standards from the readings that the article meets is the procurement of voluntary consent from research participants prior to commencement of the study. In seeking to describe their research methods, the authors of the research article I’ve selected point out that participants were recruited after meeting a specific inclusion criteria. One of the items in the said criteria is “capacity to provide informed consent.” In this case, the authors point out that all the participants (799 in total) gave their consent (in written form) for participation in the study. I am convinced that informed consent is of great relevance in seeking to ensure that all those who participate in each study do so voluntarily. Therefore, it is one of the ethical concerns I will be seeking to uphold. This is more so the case given the need to ensure that all participants are aware of the purpose of research and the inherent risks, if any. For this reason, in addition to ensuring that prospective participants are aware of the procedures to be undertaken, I will also ensure that the said participants understand the study purpose as well as the benefits (and risks) of participating in the study.
1. Describe your refined topic and hypothesis and how this article fits with what you are researching. Describe any changes to your hypothesis brought on by the article.
The refined topic for the study is “The Potential Consequences of an Untreated Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder” and the hypothesis is as follows:
H1: Untreated post-traumatic stress disorders reduces the life expectancy of the affected population
H2: Untreated PTSD contributes to higher poverty rates among the affected populations.
H3: Untreated PTSD can have a lasting mental health effect on the victim decades after traumatic events.
The article “Consequences of Untreated Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Following War in Former Yugoslavia: Morbidity, Subjective Quality of Life, and Care Costs” (Priebe et al., 2009) explores the longstanding outcomes of mental health for the people who encountered PTSD during a war but have never had the chance to undergo necessary treatment. The outcome of the research by Priebe et al. (2009) reveals that people suffering from war related post-traumatic stress disorder without treatment have higher chances of experiencing the PTSD even after a decade following the traumatic war event (Priebe et al., 2009). The SQOL (subjective quality of life) for the war victims is lower. Such victims also incur higher costs of care. The research also found that factors reported to encourage post-traumatic stress disorder are also fundamental for the recovery process for the PTSD victims. Further the research found that SQOL for PTSD patients is impaired individualistically of other social factors.
In many ways the research by Priebe et al. (2009) seems to validate the three hypotheses. The article is very relevant to the current research topic for the reason that it investigates the consequences of untreated PTSD among the victims of the Yugoslavian war. The subjects of the war suffered PTSD during the cause of the war but did not receive any psychological or psychiatric treatment (Priebe et al., 2009). This means, therefore, that the outcomes of this research will offer a qualitative and fundamental perspective into the consequences of untreated PTSD on the subjects.
2. Answer all of the bullet pointed questions on page 39
On the amount of time it would take to complete the study, it is expected that the research will take relatively four weeks given that the research will be qualitative and not quantitative. This means that the materials relied upon will be past research findings from peer reviewed articles and authors. I will devote 5 hours each week to the study. The cost of conducting the research will be relatively low bearing in mind that the school library resources will be made available. The materials used will readily available as well. Access to the necessary resources such as a computer, internet service, library resources, mentorship resources from the faculty, and other fundamental resources will not be difficult due to proximity. At this point I do not require any approval from research subjects because the research will be purely qualitative. All the cited resources will be properly references hence giving credit to the primary researchers. Authority to proceed with the research topic is granted by the professor in charge.
On the ethical concerns in the research, this research will uphold the principles of honesty, objectivity, integrity, carefulness, openness, intellectual property respect, confidentiality, responsible publication, social responsibility, competence, and legality (Resnik, 2011). On honesty, the research will honestly communicate research data and findings, procedures and methods, and the status of publication. All the data used will not be misrepresented, falsified, or fabricated in any way. The intention is not to deceive the public, research sponsors, or fellow colleagues (Pimple, 2016). The research will honor all copyrights, patents and other intellectual property categories. Unpublished data will not be used nor will research results and methods be applied without proper authority (Smith, 2003). Credit and acknowledgement will be given to every entity or individual who has contributed to the research (Smith, 2003). This research will be individual work and will not entertain any form of plagiarism.
I have the necessary knowledge, skills and expertise to conduct this research. Given the depth of understanding on how a sound research process should be conducted, I believe I have acquired all the necessary tools that will enable me to conduct the research without compromising or falling short of any requirement.
3. Briefly review the article using guidelines in the book relying on the "make it practical" box in chapter 2.
The process of locating and applying literature review articles employs the six stages of planning. The first stage is evaluating of resources. Given the fact that I have access to university library materials, the next step was to locate and narrow down the topic. The specific search question in this regard was untreated PTSD. This was the key search-phrase that allowed me access to and sampling of the available articles. The research topic at this point was still scanty. The available materials helped me shape the research topic gradually until I arrived at the appropriate research topic i.e. “The Potential Consequences of an Untreated Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder”. In order to enable the research I had to concert the research question into terms and central ideas captured in the keyword phrase. This is how I mastered the skill to utilize the search tools. The outcome of the keyword search yielded several materials. The process of narrowing down the available materials for the relevant research material involved reading through abstracts or the first few lines. This is how I was able to locate the article titled “Consequences of Untreated Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Following War in Former Yugoslavia: Morbidity, Subjective Quality of Life, and Care Costs” and other relevant material (Priebe et al., 2009). The search material narrowed down to was especially relevant based on the soundness of the research findings. The findings and outcome from Priebe et al. (2009) spoke to the hypothesis and hence making the article quite relevant to the study.
4. Describe how could this study have been conducted unethically and, in a separate section, how could this research have been conducted unscientifically, justify your positions using what you have read in the book.
This research would have been conducted unethically if the principles of research were not adhered to. For instance, if the consent of the participants was not sought then the research would have been unethical. Furthermore, if all the secondary information used was not cited and credited to the actual researcher then the research would be infringing on intellectual property. In the same breath had the researchers (Priebe et al., 2009) doctored, manipulated, falsified, fabricated, or misrepresented the data in order to justify their hypothesis, then the research findings, and outcomes would be misleading and unreliable. This would be unethical and illegal.
The research would be unscientific is the sampling methods used were unreliable. The people recruited for inclusion in the research had to meet certain criteria including the following: Must have been originated from the former Yugoslavia and must have been aged between 18 years and 70 years, the subject must also have been exposed to PTSD following the events of the war, subject must have been diagnosed with PTSD at some point after the war, the subject must not be under or have undergone any psychological or psychiatric treatment at all since the Yugoslavian war, the subject must also have had the capacity to give consent to the research. If any of the stated parameters was overlooked the authenticity of the research outcome would be questionable. Furthermore the interviewers were anthropologists, physicians, and psychologists who underwent more training in order to enhance their capacity to administer study instruments. Had the interviewers not met the professionalism criteria, and have no background in mental health and history the research outcomes would not have been sound.
References
Priebe et al. (2009). Consequences of Untreated Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Following War in Former Yugoslavia: Morbidity, Subjective Quality of Life, and Care Costs. Croatian Medical Journal, 50(5), 465-475.
Pimple, K. D. (2016). Research ethics. London: Routledge
Resnik, D. (2011). What is Ethics in Research & Why is It Important. Niehs. Nih. Gov/Research/Resources/Bioethics/Whatis., 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2009.0086
Smith, D. (2003). Five principles for research ethics. https://doi.org/10.1037/e300062003-028