THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF POST-DEPLOYED VETERAN USE OF RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY: A TRANSCENDENTAL PHENOMENOLOGICAL QUALITATIVE STUDY

The purpose of this study was to understand the lived experiences of post-deployed veterans’ use of religion and spirituality. I used a transcendental phenomenological approach, following the seven steps of the Moustakas’ (1994) modification of the Van Kaam (1956) method for analyzing data. I interviewed seven participants who had returned from deployment within 12 months prior to this study, guiding the interviews with four main interview questions. Six religious and spiritual themes emerged underneath a larger umbrella of Family. The themes included Prayer, Connection, Spiritual/Religious Reading, Faith, Spiritual Practices, and Corporate Worship. Three subthemes emerged under Connection, which included Intentional Time with Self, Intentional Time with Others, and Intentional Time with Family. Two subthemes emerged under Spiritual Practices, which included Gratitude and Helping Others. The themes and subthemes indicated that certain elements of religion and spirituality were helpful to this group of post-deployed veterans. Further research with larger participant pools is recommended to provide additional supportive evidence for the themes of this study and expand upon the findings.