Our PhD Study

We’ve had this clinical study done to underline how competitive kart racing is benefitting injured troops that take part.

The results of this study are very interesting. “This detailed study of injured armed forces personnel, compared with professional racing drivers, has demonstrated that, even for people seriously injured and psychologically traumatised, there are significant benefits of karting.”

The study involved 15 injured veterans that compete regularly in kart racing, 5 veterans that tried it but decided it wasn’t an activity for them and 5 professional racing driver. These were…

Karting is not just a fun leisure activity. It’s a highly competitive sport that requires a lot of determination and discipline – and it’s amazing how it’s having such positive impact on the lads.

You can read the Executive Summary HERE and read the full Final Report HERE.

Aims and Objectives
While there is significant research regarding the impact of combat and war experience in the UK, there is a need for further work to understand the transition and resettlement issues of veterans from military to civilian life, and the impact of physical (e.g. injury) and psychological trauma on their sense of identity during this process.

This research project will focus on the potential benefits of competitive motorsport for dealing successfully with these issues.

The aim is to explore the impact that competitive motorsports have on veterans’ well-being, rehabilitation, active coping skills and their ability to resolve the challenges of transition and dealing with the memories of their experiences.

The methods involve narrative interviews and questionnaires.

Dr Nigel Hunt is an associate professor in the School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham. After bricklaying and HGV lorry driving, he trained as a psychologist. He is a Chartered Psychologist, an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society, a registered member of the Health and Care Professions Council, and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. His PhD focused on the long term psychological problems faced by World War Two veterans, and since then has conducted numerous studies with veterans and with others who have faced traumatic and stressful situations. He has written 7 books and numerous journal articles on the subject.

Danai Serfioti is a PhD researcher in Applied Psychology at The University of Nottingham. She has a BSc in Psychology and an MSc in Occupational Psychology. She is also an MBPsS and RQTU member of The British Psychological Society. Her areas of interest are psychological trauma, mental illness, domestic violence and narrative approaches. Danai has hands-on experience working with vulnerable groups of people, both adults and children.

Danai’s PhD research is focused on veterans’ transition and resettlement into civilian life, psychological change particularly related to physical injury and psychological trauma, family and peer support, and the impact of competitive motorsport (as a non-conventional intervention) on veterans’ reintegration after deployment.