| With the increase of Latinos participating in the United States military, it is crucial that researchers investigate the exigencies wars have on Latino veterans experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder. The numerous challenges Latino veterans encounter include: establishing a military identity, the need to differentiate between subgroups of Hispanics, acculturation conflicts, cultural values, pre-existing trauma, and ethnocultural factors regarding symptom presentation and community functioning were explored in both the literature review and interviews with Field Consultants. The literature and interviews with Field Consultants suggest the importance of thoroughly understanding the military community, Hispanic culture, the impact of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the combination of research and clinical practice, to develop interventions specific to this racial-ethnic group. The project involved reviewing existing literature, and conducting structured interviews with Field Consultants, who are considered experts, and have a professional experience working with Latino veterans. Furthermore, I developed a PowerPoint presentation for a group of mental health professionals at The Soldier's Project; and provided an extensive review on the military and Latino culture, and specific clinical interventions, which included assessing for levels of acculturation, prior trauma, and addressing family involvement in treatment. An introduction to the clinical dissertation topic, selective literature review, project methodology, results of interviews, presentation evaluation and feedback, limitations of the project, and recommendations for future research are addressed within the project.;Keywords: Latino; veterans; posttraumatic stress disorder; trauma; acculturation. |
