Reconnection, relocation and outdoor recreation therapy for

Reconnection, Relocation and Outdoor Recreation Therapy
for Returning Combatants: (Re)Discovering the Land Ethic
through Guided Hunting Expeditions
Keith G. Tidball, PhD
25th International Symposium on Society and Resource Management
2019

'We abuse land because we see it
as a commodity belonging to us.
When we see land as
a community to which
we belong,
we may begin to use it with love
and respect.’
Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
Aldo Leopold holds a ring-necked pheasant during a Nov. 1943 hunt at Riley Preserve in Riley, Wisconsin.
(Photo: Aldo Leopold Foundation)

Leopold expands the
definition of “community” to
include not only humans, but
all of the other parts of the
Earth, as well: soils, waters,
plants, and animals, or what
Leopold called “the land.”

War abuses land, alters it, fractures
our relationship with it…
Lochnagar Crater formed in 1916 from explosives at the Battle of the Somme, France. Photo credit – Michaeil St. Maur Sheil/ Smithsonian Institute

War traumatizes some combatants,
inflicting grief, guilt, remorse… and later a
host of conditions that appear on the
trauma spectrum.
Wounded Sgt. Ken Kozakiewicz sobs as Cpl. Mike Tsangarakis peers into the bodybag holding their comrade, Pvt. Andy Alaniz during the Gulf War. (David C. Turnley photo/ The Buffalo News)

The problem “lies in the psychological shock American vets encounter at home,
rooted in the vast gulf between the essentially tribal nature of war and modern,
individualistic societies.”
“Contemporary culture’s failure to properly reintegrate those who suffer danger
and trauma —not just soldiers but emergency personnel and others—is not a
matter of misapplied funding or mental health care, but of modernity’s inability
to offer a communal bond that matches the veterans’
intense experiences.”
“Humans don’t mind hardship as much as they mind feeling useless, and modern
society has perfected the art of making people not feel necessary.”
“Tells what my family sees
and does at its week-end refuge
from too much modernity : the Shack.”
Aldo Leopold

A community to which we belong
com·mu·ni·ty
/kəˈmyo͞onədē/
noun
1.a group of people or other organisms living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in
common. "the hunting community“
2.a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.
"the sense of community that common tasks and purpose can provide“
A community implies a sense of belonging, connection, communication and interaction. Attachment
to a community is known to confer benefits and improve well-being. Belonging to community is
viewed almost a necessity to have a meaningful life.

A community to which we belong
Bi-directional relationship – the community to which we belong welcomes us…

Do I belong? Am I accepted?
“Disconnected Soldier” - Leslie Herman, illustrator Marianne Seregi, art director The Washington Post, client
https://www.commarts.com/project/22348/disconnected-soldier
Do I belong?
Where do I belong?

If I could,
you know I would,
if I could,
I would…
Let it go
This desperation
Dislocation
Separation
Condemnation
Revelation
in temptation
Isolation
Desolation
Let it go
And so fade
away…. U2 -- Songwriters: Adam Clayton / Dave Evans / Larry Mullen / Paul Hewson
U2
“Bad”

Painting by Lindele Msweli Untitled, 2018 Acrylic on Paper 39 2/5 × 27 3/5 in 100 × 70 cm
“I retired in May of this year. Since then I have had a bit of a time
getting adjusted to being a civilian. I have missed the camaraderie of
my fellow Marines, the guys I could trust for advice and guidance. I
have felt somewhat lost since getting out of the Corps. Attending the
Wounded Warriors in Action Ducks & Bucks Hunt with fellow service
members gave me back some of the camaraderie I have missed. It also
gave me the excitement and adrenaline rush that came with being a
Marine. I felt comfortable with my guides - and was able to share
some of the baggage I have been carrying around from the past few
years. It was a great experience, one I will never forget. Thank you,
Wounded Warriors in Action for such a wonderful experience! Semper
Fi!“
-S. Taylor, USMC
Purple Heart Recipient

What did we do?
• Theme generation Focus
Group at Fort Drum
• 52 semi-structured
interviews conducted over
11 unique hunting outings
• Field Observations
• Coding and content analysis
• Refine and apply RERAS
model
Mixed Methods

Focus Group Theme Generation – Collaborative Cut & Paste Concept Mapping (C3M)

Images and concepts from C3M exercise
wherein participants report concepts and
values such as:
reward
personal growth
maturity
patience
safety

A C3M image with descriptors
focusing on notions of togetherness,
being with someone in the outdoors,
defeating loneliness.

Multiple concepts are represented on
this C3M including peace and solitude,
goal orientation, and stewardship.

In addition to values of love, respect, and
connection to nature, this C3M cluster
indicates a strong feminine notion of
interrelation, illustrating that the values of
hunting (and fishing) as therapeutic outdoor
recreation need not be limited to males.

This C3M image and
interpretation point to one of
the more recurring themes in
hunting as therapeutic outdoor
recreation, a complex notion of
family, feeling needed by and
part of a group, and the ability
to mentor junior members of
the group.

An example of the importance of
problem-solving and mastery in
therapeutic outdoor recreational
activities for veterans.

This C3M clearly emphasizes notions of re-
connectedness, and the relationship
between interaction with animals and
outdoor settings.

Another iteration of the
importance of sanctuary, quiet
relaxation, and simplicity

Results of C3M theme generation mapped on to Kellert’s indicators of biophilia

52 Interviews conducted and recorded, transcribed, and now being coded.

Preliminary Results
Interview data suggest:
• Themes generated via Focus Group C3M exercise at Fort Drum valid and are
recurrent
• Of the items in the “Therapeutic Hunting & Fishing Typology of Values of
Nature”
• Aesthetic, humanistic, and moralistic are most frequently occurring values
• Dominionistic and Utilitarian follow closely
• Negativistic is the least frequently referenced
• Additional concepts emerging such as:
• Thrill and excitement
• A reason/motivation to get out/ get outside
• Regeneration of unit cohesion, comradery, and esprit de corps

Passive
Active
Intentionally
Designed
Therapeutic Hunting
Experiences
Stress Reduction
Theory
Biophilia/
Therapeutic Hunting
& Angling Typology of
Values
Attention Restoration
Theory
Reconnection
Empowerment
Restoration
Achievement
Resilience
Social Support
IdentityStress Reduction Self - Systems
RERARS* model for identifying
outcomes of participation in
Intentionally Designed Therapeutic
Hunting Experiences. Adapted from
Ewert and Voight's (2012)
"Intentionally Designed Experiences
and Human Health Outcome Model.”
*perceived gains in levels of reconnection, empowerment, restoration,
achievement, and social support

Cosmos
Natural Community
Traditional Community
Neighborhood
Unit
Family
Personal
Reconnection – where to start?
Minimal
Threat
Moderate
Threat
Maximum
Threat
A
L
I
E
N
A
T
I
O
N
T
O
R
E
C
O
N
N
E
C
T
I
O
N
C
O
N
T
I
N
U
U
M
OUTSIDE IN!

Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) John J. McDaniel, a native of Oshkosh WI, founded Wounded
Warriors in Action Foundation in 2007 and established its corporate headquarters in Apollo
Beach, Florida. A retired Army officer, John felt that his service to the nation was not yet finished.
He started as a concerned citizen taking a few Wounded Warriors out on hunting and fishing trips,
but quickly saw that the need for this kind of healing was greater than he could support on his
own. In 2009 WWIA was granted 501(c)(3) nonprofit status and has been changing the lives of
American Heroes and American Sportsmen and women across the country ever since..

In conclusion, this ongoing work continues to suggest strongly that
Intentionally Designed Therapeutic Hunting Experiences offer veterans (1) a
communal bond that matches the veterans’ intense experiences while (2)
allowing veterans to expand themselves through immersion in and
subsequent acknowledgement of membership, of being welcomed back in,
to the community as Leopold describes. This homecoming is the beginning of
a path of reconnection and restoration, from the outside in, for veterans’
community, their families, and for themselves.
Thank you!

Reconnection, relocation and outdoor recreation therapy for

Reconnection, relocation and outdoor recreation therapy for

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