The aim of this study was to explore the effect a coloring condition had on minimizing anxiety and stress experienced daily by veterans. The effect that coloring had on working memory was also explored.
A sample of 24 armed forces veterans were split into two coloring conditions, a mandala and a free draw condition, and asked to complete the Primary Care PTSD Screen, the Perceived Stress Scale and the Brief State Trait Anxiety Inventory. Working memory scores were established via a Backward Digit Recall task; pre-and posttest scores were evaluated for significant differences.
Our research suggests the act of coloring, not the coloring condition, resulted in significant decreases in stress and anxiety and an increase in working memory. We also found that participants who suffer from PTSD displayed significant decreases in stress and anxiety and significant increases in working memory when compared to individuals without PTSD.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unf.edu/oai:digitalcommons.unf.edu:etd-1794 |
| Date | 01 January 2017 |
| Creators | Rodak, Jourdan A |
| Publisher | UNF Digital Commons |
| Source Sets | University of North Florida |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | UNF Theses and Dissertations |
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