PTSD Qualitative Methodologies for Investigating

PTSD

Qualitative Methodologies for Investigating PTSD

Individuals returning from military combat are among the most vulnerable demographics to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and its related consequences of emotional instability, psychological despair, substance abuse and a host of other war-related dissonances. In the wake of the protracted conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, it has become increasingly apparent that there is a need to prepare through better understanding for a new generation of individuals that are highly vulnerable to the PTSD and its related consequences. The discussion here with therefore consider military-related PTSD in light of several different qualitative research approaches. These will lend insight into the various ways that PTSD might be better understood.

Ethnographic Research:

Based on the pretense that clinical and laboratory observations are often distorted by the false nature of the setting, field observation promotes the notion that to consider the subject's behavior in a natural setting will be likelier to yield meaningful information. In particular, there are specific observational opportunities that may only be experienced in this natural setting and cannot otherwise be effectively recreated in a more empirically driven or controlled setting. To this extent, our research identifies the ethnography as "a branch of cultural anthropology." (Garson, 1) the indicates that in some regard, the social behaviors exhibited by subjects are in their own degree manifested by the controlled parameters of the group selected for observation.

One research problem related to combat-based PTSD is that concerning what experiences have caused the disorders in question. An ethnography might place a researcher directly into a combat troop as an observer with the research purpose of following a unit through the travails of war and recording events that might later be associated to resultant PTSD. The primary research question will ask the following: How might better understanding the actual experiences of combat soldiers contribute to more effective therapeutic treatment for PTSD?

Case Study Research:

Like the ethnography, the case study is distinguished by the use of real-world contexts. The result is that such "qualitative case study methods and design strategies can be particularly useful for evaluation of individualized participant outcomes and organization-level impacts." (Patton, 159) This points us toward the research problem of addressing the individual emotional and psychological conditions which might predispose a combat-ready soldier to PTSD. The research purpose would be to identify those experiential, emotional and psychological traits that have been previously present in soldiers who are ultimately more prone to PTSD. A case study could center on a single unit of soldiers and would be based first on the composition of a psychological profile and subsequently on the outcome of PTSD or the absence of such an outcome. The primary research question will ask the following: Is it possible to identify individual traits and psychological profiles that are more or less vulnerable to combat-based PTSD?

Grounded Theory Research:

The grounded theory is by its intent inclined toward improving the degree of external validity availed to the qualitative study. By nature, this approach demonstrates that "much research is pragmatically driven by the high-impact publication requirements of academia." (Byrne et al., 47) This is an important idea to consider in desiring to reflect validity in a qualitative approaches taken toward PTSD. Here, the intent for the researcher is to 'ground' his experiment in a thorough understanding of the research subject, with the primary research problem being the need to understand the nature of PTSD. The research purpose would be to gather and consult a sufficient number of academic sources to provide a meaningful definition of PTSD. The primary research question will ask the following: Can a fuller definitional understanding of PTSD promote better diagnostic capabilities amongst military doctors and therapists?

Phenomenological Research:

In certain study cases, external validity or the potential for generality are not practical goals. Instead, the uniqueness of a subject may denote the need for a research approach which is governed by its understanding of the subject's perception as individualistic, governed by personal experiences and capable of yielding insights which cannot be duplicated. The purpose of such a phenomenological research approach might be most useful in the sociological or psychological context, where researchers may possess a specific interest in understanding the individuality in certain human response tendencies. Here, a research problem might be concerned with the proclivity toward violent or criminal behavior amongst those with PTSD. The research purpose would be to engage in a one-on-one consultation with an individual who has lapsed into such violence and criminality in order to better understand the individual vagaries of his situation. The primary research question will ask the following: What conditions combined with the subject's PTSD to make him particularly susceptible to violent or criminal behavior?

Narrative Research: