Stories in Transition: Examining the role of arts, culture and sport in supporting veteran transition to civilian life

The Stories in Transition project pioneers creative methods to co-produce research with veterans about the role of arts, sport and culture activities in supporting military-to-civilian transition. In the aftermath of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan British veterans have received unprecedented attention from media, government and the wider public. Increasingly, arts, sport and cultural activities are being used to support veterans; high profile theatre projects, such as "The Two Worlds of Charlie F", and sporting initiatives, such the Invictus Games, are good examples of this new trend.

Whilst organisations using arts, sport and culture are popular with veterans, they do not have a strong evidence base and we do not understand why these activities could benefit veterans.

Current research on veterans is dominated by health perspectives and focuses on easily measurable outcomes like rates of alcoholism and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Missing from this research are veterans' experiences, explained in their own words, as they adapt to civilian life and make sense of their new identity. It is known that veterans may experience alienation, and many grieve the loss of their military way of life and comradeship.

The Stories in Transition project recognises that becoming a civilian is a more complicated social and cultural process that goes beyond the need for housing, employment and healthcare. This project aims to explore how veterans author their own stories about life after military service through participation in arts, sport and culture activities, and through producing creative documentary films.

The project is unique because it engages with veterans in a creative and empowering way. Unlike measuring instrumental transition 'outcomes', like scores on a questionnaire, we are interested in what transition itself really means to veterans and what they think they get out of participating in arts, sport and culture activities.

This inter-disciplinary project combines creative and collaborative research methodologies with a rigorous case study design to study three veterans' organisations that use sailing, theatre and archaeology in their work. Veterans' voices are at the heart of the research process, and they will work with researchers in the fields of critical military studies, participatory arts and creative practice methodologies to co-produce and co-author their own transition stories and engage in collective reflection about their participation in arts, sport and culture activities.

Professionally-edited creative documentary films will share new knowledge of veterans' military and post-military lives, and showcase the role of arts, sport and culture in supporting their transition to civilian life. The research has the potential to transform our understanding of both transition and the unique opportunities of arts, sport and culture activities.

In doing so, it will provide the partner organisations, veteran community, military charity sector, practitioners of arts, sport and culture, and the wider public with new knowledge of what transition 'is' and how arts, sport and culture can best be used to support veterans.