RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Amy Evans

This research article, “Yoga for Veterans with PTSD: Cognitive functioning, Mental health, and Salivary Control” was based on a random sampling of veterans with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the levels of cortisol produced when using yoga (Zaccari et al., 2020). There were several weaknesses in the sample and a couple of strengths as well. There are some things that could have been done to improve the sampling process in this research. One of these would be to begin with a larger sample size so that if participants dropped out, there would still be a relevant sample size number. In this study, there is a significant, highly noticeable sampling error. Another would be a better baseline questionnaire identifying the best group exercise technique for all participants. The errors made with sampling in this research show that the sampling techniques did not promote valid and reliable results of the study.

One strength in this study on PTSD and cortisol level from yoga therapy is all participants had a medical history of PTSD according to their physician’s recommendation into the study, and all participants were exposed to yoga therapy. Another strength is all participants had tried some other type of therapy in the past.  

There are many weaknesses in the random sampling of this study. One of these is the sample size. There were only 27 enrolled participants with only 17 participants completing the study in full. That is only 63% of the participants, which is only a little over half of the participants. A larger sample size was needed. The technique in which this sampling was tested also seems to be a downfall of this study in that sufferers of PTSD were positioned to face each other in their yoga treatment. This could be one reason among others that some participants dropped out of the study. Out of the 17 participants, there were two more males than females that completed the study. The sample should have involved an equal number of males and female veterans with PTSD. “For a sample to be representative, it must be similar to the target population in as many ways as possible” (Gray & Grove, 2021, p. 413). The sampling size was not representative to a whole population of veterans with PTSD using yoga therapy to find an increased cortisol amount affecting fewer depressive symptoms and better sleep patterns.

                                                                                                                     References

Gray, J. R, & Grove, S. K. (2021).  Burns and Grove’s the practice of nursing research: Appraisal, synthesis, and generation of evidence (9th ed.). Elsevier.

Zaccari, B., Callahan, M. L., Storzbach, D., McFarlane, N., Hudson, R., & Loftis, J. M. (2020). Yoga for veterans with PTSD: Cognitive functioning, mental

           health, and salivary cortisol.  Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy,  12(8), 913–917. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000909