"This final overarching report in a series documents research and recommendations RAND offered to the Air Force to help strengthen the development of a new office responsible for monitoring and promoting resilience among Air Force Airmen, civilian employees, and Air Force families. Efforts to boost resilience have become an important military response to suicide and other markers of distress and poor health. The report reviews the concepts and measures of resilience, resilience factors, hardiness and flourishing. It describes how resilience and the military's Total Force Fitness concepts are related. The report brings together highlights from the eight companion reports on each Total Force Fitness domain and characterizes types of Air Force data that could be used to track resilience."-- Provided on the publisher's website.

As U.S. service members deploy for extended periods on a repeated basis, their ability to cope with the stress of deployment may be challenged. Many programs are available to encourage and support psychological resilience among service members and families. However, little is known about these programs' effectiveness. This report reviews resilience literature and programs to identify evidence-informed factors for promoting resilience.

The U.S. military has been continuously engaged in foreign conflicts for over two decades. The strains that these deployments, the associated increases in operational tempo, and the general challenges of military life affect not only service members but also the people who depend on them and who support them as they support the nation â€" their families. Family members provide support to service members while they serve or when they have difficulties; family problems can interfere with the ability of service members to deploy or remain in theater; and family members are central influences on whether members continue to serve. In addition, rising family diversity and complexity will likely increase the difficulty of creating military policies, programs and practices that adequately support families in the performance of military duties. Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society examines the challenges and opportunities facing military families and what is known about effective strategies for supporting and protecting military children and families, as well as lessons to be learned from these experiences. This report offers recommendations regarding what is needed to strengthen the support system for military families.

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 has created massive disruption in kids' lives around the world. As adults it's our responsibility to learn about this virus and to keep our communities safe. This book is meant to help parents and teachers discuss COVID-19 with children and teach them about the virus and how we can stay healthy. Things are scarier when we don't understand them. The first half of the book is a kid's book that tells the story of two puppies learning about COVID-19; the second half is meant for adults and is a short explanation of what is happening and what we can do about it. After reading the back half you will be ready to discuss COVID-19 with your kids. Remember, together we can beat this.

This report is one of a series designed to support Air Force leaders in promoting resilience among its Airmen, civilian employees, and Air Force families. It examines the relationship between physical fitness and resilience, using key constructs found in the scientific literature that address work-related physical fitness and health-related physical fitness.

This book examines the politics of military families in relation to the tensions between the state, military organization, and private life. It elaborates on the tensions between the advent of challenging worldwide deployment for the military and the prominence of the home front. The volume aims to understand the dynamics of conflict and change within triad figurations at the macro (society), meso (organizational), and micro (family) level and is guided by the following overarching research questions: What are the key issues in the three-party dynamics? What tensions exist in these dynamics? How do actors seek to arrive at a balance? What initiatives for change are made? With contributions from international scholars, who examine the workings of politics in military families at all three levels, the book argues that members within military families deal with shifting power balances and these are impacted by demands from organizations and the state. This book will be of much interest to students of military studies, sociology, organizational studies and politics.