Participant Inventory

Happy 4th of July Weekend!

Here is a bit of information related to key questionnaires we will have our participants complete for our study.

The Psychometric Properties of PTSD Checklist For DSM-V (PCL-5) is a 20-item self-report measure of diagnostic symptomology for PTSD.

This measure has been approved for research studies and a strong correlation exists between the PCL-5 and and the Clinician-administered PTSD Scale, the gold standard for clinical diagnosis (Jeffreys et al., 2014; Kasckow, Yeager, & Magruder, 2015; Keen, Kutter, Niles, & Krinsley, 2008) .

The Physical Activity And Leisure Motivation Scale (PALMS), is a scale that examines a person's level of intrinsic or extrinsic motivation for participating in physical activity.

Results support valid and reliable application for measuring a wide range of motives for participation in physical activity. Each of the eight motivational sub-scales have implications underlying intent and behaviors related exercise (Molanorouzi, Khoo, & Morris, 2014).

The Posttraumatic Growth Inventory-Short Form (PTGI-SF) is a 10-item self-report measure, validated to assess positive psychological changes as a result of traumatic experiences.

This inventory aims to account for positive lifestyle changes or behaviors supporting exercise adherence despite any contradictory scores on the PCL-5 (Cann et al., 2010; Shakespeare-Finch & Lurie-Beck, 2014). In a web-based survey involving more than two thousand US Veterans, approximately 75 percent of respondents who screened positive for PTSD, demonstrated moderate levels of posttraumatic growth (PTG) (Tsai et al., 2014) . These findings strongly correlate with psychosocial factors such as social connectedness and purpose in life, which are necessary components implicated in behavioral paradigms, such as Social Cognitive Theory, which support long-term exercise maintenance. Veterans with PTSD who demonstrated PTG, also mentioned having improvements in mental clarity and well-being in comparison to those experiencing PTG(Hankonen et al., 2010; Shakespeare-Finch & Lurie-Beck, 2014).