Currently, there are approximately 1.1 million caregivers who are caring for veterans who have served in the military following September 11 (9/11), 2001 (Ramchand et al., 2014). In this study, a mixed methods analysis of post 9/11 caregivers enrolled in the North Florida South Georgia Caregiver Support Program was completed with a convenience sample of 172 participants for quantitative analysis which included 16 participants for the phenomenological query. Correlations, t-tests, and ANOVAs were used to determine the associations among race, gender, age, caregiver type, diagnosis, tier level, and the presence of children in the home with caregiver burden as measured by the Zarit caregiver burden inventory (ZBI). T-tests resulted in a significantly higher ZBI with caregivers who had children in the home (M = 6.84; SD = 3.21) versus those who did not (M = 5.57; SD = 2.75), t (160) = -2.36, p=.02. An ANOVA was conducted across caregiver role (parent, spouse, significant other and other) and the ZBI and a significant difference was found (F [3, 159] = 1.59, p < .01, with spousal caregivers having a significantly higher ZBI score (M=6.83; SD=3.10) than parental caregivers (M = 4.46; SD=2.70). The phenomenological research focused on shared lived experiences of post 9/11 caregivers of seriously injured veterans, including their experiences with the Caregiver Support Program, the impact of having children in the home, and the utilization of technology and online support with caregiving. Differences between spousal and parental caregivers were also explored. The caregivers’ shared experiences resulted in 22 major themes which included family adjustment, subjective demands, coping techniques, social support, Veterans Affairs (VA) and Department of Defense (DOD) services, self-care, intimacy, role strain, financial resources, and life course changes as the most prevalent. Caregivers and their families had a difficult time adjusting post injury, particularly with subjective demands. Caregivers relied mainly on their own coping mechanisms to adapt to their new role and did not find social support to be helpful with caregiving. Spousal caregivers tended to have more difficulty adjusting than did parental caregivers, which was also found in the quantitative study. While the Caregiver Support Program provided many services that were helpful to the caregivers, including a financial stipend, they wanted additional services which included additional financial support and services while citing issues with program implementation and staffing as major barriers. Children added complexity to the caregiving relationship and increased burden. Children displayed behavioral changes, mostly negative, but some positive such as giving both the caregiver and the veteran a sense of purpose. Lastly, technology and online support with caregiving was used more often than not with mixed feelings about the technology and its trustworthiness; with parents not utilizing these resources as much as spousal caregivers. The study concludes with implications for current and future social work practice and research, as well as the study’s strengths and limitations.

Research has shown that South African mathematics performance is extremely poor compared to other countries that participated in the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Most of the competing countries were developing and were disadvantaged by their socio-economic status compared to the more economically vibrant South Africa. However, South Africa came last in the mathematics and science standardised tests commonly referred to as the Annual National Assessment and National Benchmark Test. The poor performance of the country’s learners in mathematics is exacerbated by the inability of veteran mathematics teachers to adopt technological teaching methods and innovations during teaching and learning. The Mathletics programme is a modern teaching tool that links every aspect of mathematics teaching and learning and gives individual learners the ability to successfully engage in mathematics learning activities. The learner gains mental mathematics skills to solve mathematical problems and is then able to apply the acquired mathematical skills to solve similar mathematical problems in any given situation. This study aimed to investigate and develop the professional status of veteran primary school mathematics teachers through participatory action research to improve their understanding of the application of Mathletics during teaching and learning. The data for my study was collected via audiotape, semi-structured interviews, and participant observations. The participants were veteran mathematics primary school teachers between the ages of 40 and 59 from the Gauteng Department of Education, Tshwane South District Circuit 2. The interviews and observations were conducted at times and venues preferred by the participants at their respective schools. The main research finding of the study shows that the majority of the participating veteran primary school teachers are not fully prepared in terms of skills, resources and methods to effectively respond to the recent technological teaching and learning transformations. As a recommendation, this study needs further research to benefit more schools and more teachers, so that participatory action research (PAR) can be a method for continuing professional development (CPD). / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Humanities Education / MEd / Unrestricted

A civil-military divide exists within the United States and is perpetuated by a distinct lack of communication between the civilian and military sectors within the population. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine whether attitudes and behaviors of combat veterans affect their positive reintegration into civilian communities. Binder’s social ecology theory provided the framework for the study. Data were collected from 255 combat veterans who responded to a survey. Results were analyzed using a hierarchical multiple linear regression model to determine the influence of military job satisfaction, post-deployment stressors, post-deployment support, and civic engagement on community reintegration efforts, while controlling for age, branch of military service, place of residence, political party affiliation, education, rank, reason for ending military service, and sex. There were statistically significant results that indicate prediction for successful community reintegration may be dependent upon the identification of key associations, including post-deployment support, education, rank, and the reason an individual transitioned out of military service. Findings may also provide policymakers with information about the community reintegration process, which may be used to improve reintegration efforts of combat veterans transitioning back to civilian life for positive social change.

Transgender (TG) persons often receive, or self-treat, with cross-sex hormone (CSH) treatments as part of their treatment plans, with little known about their incidence of breast cancer. This information gap can lead to disparities in the provision of transgender health care. The purpose of the study was to examine the incidence of breast cancer in the largest North American sample of TG patients studied to date to determine their exposure to CSH, incidence of breast cancer, and to compare results with European studies in transsexual populations. We used Veterans Health Administration (VHA) data from 5,135 TG veterans in the United States from 1996 to 2013 to determine the incidence of breast cancer in this population. Chart reviews were completed on all patients who developed breast cancer. Age-standardized incidences of breast cancer from the general population were used for comparison. Person-years of exposure to known CSH treatment were calculated. Ten breast cancer cases were confirmed. Seven were in female-to-male patients, two in male-to-female patients, and one in a natal male with transvestic fetishism. Average age at diagnosis was 63.8 (SD = 8.2). 52 % received >1 dose of CSH treatment from VHA clinicians. All three males presented with late-stage disease were proved fatal. The overall incidence rate was 20.0/100,000 patient-years of VHA treatment (95 % CI 9.6–36.8), irrespective of VA CSH treatment. This rate did not differ from the expected rate in an age-standardized national sample, but exceeded that reported for smaller European studies of transsexual patients that were longer in duration. Although definitive conclusions cannot be made regarding breast cancer incidence in TG veterans who did or did not receive VA CSH due to the sample size and duration of observation, it appears that TG veterans do not display an increase in breast cancer incidence. This is consistent with European studies of longer duration that conclude that CSH treatment in gender dysphoric patients of either birth sex does not result in a greater incidence than the general population.

Background: The International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA) was develo developed as a global hearing aid outcome measure targeting seven outcome domains. The published norms were based on a private-pay sample who were fitted with analog hearing aids. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of th the IOI-HA and to establish normative data in a veteran sample. Research Design: Survey. Study Sample: The participants were 131 male veterans (mean age of 74.3 years, SD = 7.4) who were issued hearing aids with digital signal processing (DSP). Intervention: Hearing aids with DSP that were fitted bilaterally between 2005 and 2007. Data Collection and Analysis: Veterans were mailed two copies of the IOI-HA. The participants were instructed to complete the first copy of the questionnaire immediately and the second copy in two weeks. The completed questionnaires were mailed to the laboratory. The psychometric properties of the questionnaire were evaluated. As suggested by Cox and colleagues, the participants were divided into two categories based on their unaided subjective hearing difficulty. The two categories were (1) those with less hearing difficulty (none-to-moderate category) and (2) those who report more hearing difficulty (moderately severe severe+ category). The norms from the current veteran sample then were compared to the original, published sample. For each hearing difficulty category, the critical difference values were calculated for each item and for the total score. Results: A factor analysis showed that the IOI-HA in the veteran sample had the ident identical subscale structure as reported in the original sample. For the total scale, the internal consistency was good (Chronbach's α = 0.83), and the test-retest reliability was high ( λ = 0.94). Group and individual norms were developed for both hearing difficulty categories in the veteran sample. For each IOI-HA item, the critical difference scores were <1.0. This finding suggests that for any item on the IOI-HA, there is a 95 percent chance that an observed change of one response unit between two test sessions reflects a true change in outcome for a given domain. Conclusions: The results of this study confirmed that the psychometric properties of th the IOI-HA questionnaire are strong and are essentially the same for the veteran sample and the original private-pay sample. The veteran norms, however, produced higher outcomes than those established originally, possibly because of differences in the population samples and/or hearing on aid technology. Clinical and research applications of the current findings are presented. Based on the results from the current study, the norms established here should replace the original norms for use in veterans with current hearing aid technology.

The role that support systems play in new teachers' levels of school commitment has been widely documented. However, veteran teachers' levels of commitment have not been as closely studied. According to the department of education in a Southeastern state, the veteran teacher attrition rate at a Title I school in an urban school district was in the double digits for several years. High veteran teacher attrition rates and low levels of commitment can cause problems such as loss of continuity of instruction for students. The purpose of this study was to identify veteran teachers' perceptions of their levels of school commitment and how the district can support and retain veteran educators. Self-determination theory, as it relates to the satisfaction of teachers' needs and concerns in the context of their work environment, formed the conceptual framework for this study. The study was implemented to explore research questions related to veteran teachers' needs and concerns, working conditions, and supports. A case study research design was utilized. Interview data were collected from a criterion-based, purposeful sample of 10 veteran teachers. These data were analyzed inductively for common themes and patterns and resulted in findings based on veteran teachers' needs and concerns such as greater district and parent support and job-embedded professional development. A project was developed based on the findings to address the problem. The project focused on creating professional learning communities to support veteran teachers and increase their levels of school commitment. Positive social change can result from creating these professional learning communities for veteran teachers in order to address their needs and concerns, such as greater school commitment for veteran teachers and more continuity of instruction for students, which will result in higher academic achievement.

High school graduation rates and the leadership of principals are important measures of accountability within schools. Principal leadership has been investigated through qualitative and correlational studies in mostly urban areas. Limited research has focused on the educational leadership characteristics of the high school principals and graduation rates in rural areas. The purpose of this study was to identify, describe, and categorize the leadership characteristics of veteran and novice principals with respect to graduation rates in selected rural schools. Bolman and Deal's 4 frames of leadership informed this study and helped to create the broad leadership categories of interpersonal skills, leadership and communication styles, and collaboration skills. The research questions focused on understanding the leadership characteristics and differences between novice and veteran principals. Purposive sampling was used to select 21 participants for in-depth interviews in 7 high school settings. The methodology combined interviews with a review of district data and documents. The data were thematically analyzed by a constant comparative method and category construction. Trustworthiness was ensured with member checking and triangulation. Key findings indicated that all principals had general leadership characteristics such as active listening, collaboration, a communication style, and promotion of school/home partnership. Three out of 4 high graduation rate schools tended to have veteran principals. Veteran principals focused on professional development and cultivating relationships, whereas novice principals focused on using data in decision making. Identifying and developing specific characteristics in leaders and matching them with schools will improve the instructional environment for students and strengthen the expertise of the faculty and staff.

While scholars have used Schlossberg's transition theory for more than 35 years to study college-to-work transition, researchers have yet to establish if there are meaningful differences in the perceptions of traditional and nontraditional college students regarding transition preparedness from college-to-work. Following the career transition model, this quantitative study was conducted to compare traditional and nontraditional college students' perceptions of transition preparedness, specifically the concepts of readiness, confidence, control, perceived support, and decision independence. The nontraditional students in this study were military veterans. The dependent variables were measured by the Career Transition Inventory (CTI) survey. Participants were selected via a web-based method until 100 traditional and 100 nontraditional students were surveyed. The data were examined with multivariate analysis of variance and multivariate analysis of covariance. There were significant differences found in perceived transition preparedness. The CTI measure decision independence was significantly lower among nontraditional veteran students. Whereas, the CTI measure confidence was significantly higher among nontraditional nonveteran students. Based on the results of this study, three recommendations were made. If these recommendations are followed, this study can make a positive social change and might increase the probability of improving the career and academic transition services from college-to-work for non-traditional undergraduate veteran students.

Combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related symptoms often require the use of complementary therapeutic aids, such as service dogs, to assist them in their recovery in addition to traditional evidence-based therapy. Anecdotal literature was available on the use of service dogs, but quantitative research has not been conducted to answer the question of what the impact was of the use of service dogs on reducing symptoms of PTSD among combat and non-combat veterans. Attachment theory was one of the most common theoretical frameworks for exploring the use of service dogs for treating combat PTSD. The theoretical framework for this study was derived from Bowlby's theory on attachment and the work done with Ainsworth to review the possible correlations between secure and insecure attachment styles and the impact of using service dogs. Three surveys were selected to measure PTSD related symptoms, service dog tasks, and attachment styles of the 64 participants to be able to look at PTSD-related symptoms and attachment theory in relation to service dog tasks. This study did not show a difference between combat veterans and non-combat veterans who use service dogs in the reduction of PTSD-related symptoms, but the study did show that there was a positive relationship between PTSD-related symptoms and the use of service dogs. Participants' answers supported anecdotal reports of the positive effect of the use of service dogs. The results of the current research provide implications for positive social change by providing important information in relation to service dogs could improve the quality of life and more manageable psychological symptoms, and that attachment styles should be considered as a mitigating factor which was missing in previous research.

As Tim O'Brien advises in The Things They Carried, "You can tell a true war story by the way it never seems to end" (76). If the war story never seems to end, then how does it manifest in future generations? In my case, as the first-born son of a Vietnam veteran, the war story has played out physically, within my body, in the form of an Agent Orange-related disability. How has my response to disability affected both the fine details and the overall texture of my life? My father also suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for several years after his return, a timeframe that happens to coincide with the first and most impressionable years of my life. How has this affected my relationships to my disability and to the world at large? Lastly, what can a chronicle of Agent Orange in Vietnam tell me about my own story?