‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’

Experiences of transition into civilian life after active service differs widely for military personnel. For those who experience issues in this process of transition, life can often be characterized by perceptions of loneliness, social isolation, poor mental well-being, and a functional dependency...

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Main Authors: Graham Yitka, Arabella Plouviez, Alison Clelland, Ann Fox, Ger Fowler, John Sargent, Catherine Hayes
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Specialty Publications 2022-08-01
Series:Journal of Participatory Research Methods
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.35844/001c.37612
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author Graham Yitka
Arabella Plouviez
Alison Clelland
Ann Fox
Ger Fowler
John Sargent
Catherine Hayes
author_facet Graham Yitka
Arabella Plouviez
Alison Clelland
Ann Fox
Ger Fowler
John Sargent
Catherine Hayes
author_sort Graham Yitka
collection DOAJ
description Experiences of transition into civilian life after active service differs widely for military personnel. For those who experience issues in this process of transition, life can often be characterized by perceptions of loneliness, social isolation, poor mental well-being, and a functional dependency on alcohol, alongside other negative behaviors, for coping with post-traumatic stress disorder. This research employed action research methodology and the implementation of participatory action research methods. Both facilitated a systematic and pragmatic process of revealing new understandings about how social prescribing could act as a driver of transformation for veterans and their families (51 participants engaged across 18 individual workshops). This iterative exploratory process enabled a guided understanding of complex individual and collectively-shared experiences of veterans transitioning from military back to civilian lives. The facilitated collective arts experiences for veterans and their families were undertaken by specialist artists to foster a sense of active citizenship. The study revealed that participants transitioning from military to civilian life reported an increased sense of well-being because of engaging in collective creative practice. Participants attributed this to the opportunity of learning new skills, gaining a sense of creative expression, and engaging in reflection on their military heritage and contribution to service alongside peers. Knowledge gained from this research enables consideration of how principles of participatory action research may have potential transferability to other similar contexts which serve to support veterans in their transition from military to civilian life.
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issn 2688-0261
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spelling doaj-art-7006be86fc714e4aaa5477ff2c92db892025-08-20T03:45:27ZengSpecialty PublicationsJournal of Participatory Research Methods2688-02612022-08-013210.35844/001c.37612‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’Graham YitkaArabella PlouviezAlison ClellandAnn FoxGer FowlerJohn SargentCatherine HayesExperiences of transition into civilian life after active service differs widely for military personnel. For those who experience issues in this process of transition, life can often be characterized by perceptions of loneliness, social isolation, poor mental well-being, and a functional dependency on alcohol, alongside other negative behaviors, for coping with post-traumatic stress disorder. This research employed action research methodology and the implementation of participatory action research methods. Both facilitated a systematic and pragmatic process of revealing new understandings about how social prescribing could act as a driver of transformation for veterans and their families (51 participants engaged across 18 individual workshops). This iterative exploratory process enabled a guided understanding of complex individual and collectively-shared experiences of veterans transitioning from military back to civilian lives. The facilitated collective arts experiences for veterans and their families were undertaken by specialist artists to foster a sense of active citizenship. The study revealed that participants transitioning from military to civilian life reported an increased sense of well-being because of engaging in collective creative practice. Participants attributed this to the opportunity of learning new skills, gaining a sense of creative expression, and engaging in reflection on their military heritage and contribution to service alongside peers. Knowledge gained from this research enables consideration of how principles of participatory action research may have potential transferability to other similar contexts which serve to support veterans in their transition from military to civilian life.https://doi.org/10.35844/001c.37612
spellingShingle Graham Yitka
Arabella Plouviez
Alison Clelland
Ann Fox
Ger Fowler
John Sargent
Catherine Hayes
‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’
Journal of Participatory Research Methods
title ‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’
title_full ‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’
title_fullStr ‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’
title_full_unstemmed ‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’
title_short ‘Applied Social Prescribing Practice: A Focused Arts Based Participatory Action Research Study of Military Veteran Transition Into Civilian Life’
title_sort applied social prescribing practice a focused arts based participatory action research study of military veteran transition into civilian life
url https://doi.org/10.35844/001c.37612
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