Wing Yi Chan

This study compares the behavioral health of racial/ethnic minority, women, and sexual minority service members to their majority group peers and examines minority-majority group differences in the military versus civilian population. Understanding whether minority group service members experience differences in behavioral health can assist the Department of Defense in targeting its efforts to improve force readiness.

The authors describe Puerto Rico's communities in terms of population characteristics, community and individual preparedness, and economic pressures leading up to Hurricanes Irma and Maria. They detail the storms' impact in terms of damage, community stress, and migration. The researchers developed courses of action to improve capacity for emergency preparedness, coordination, communication, recovery planning, and research and training.

The UNITE Initiative aims to promote readiness and resilience in the Air Force through events that focus on unit cohesion. The authors describe the results of their evaluation of UNITE and the program's association with unit cohesion, drawing on interviews with UNITE representatives and post-event surveys completed by airmen participants.

The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program serves young people who are experiencing difficulty in traditional high school through a 5.5-month residential program. The authors of this report document the progress of program participants in 2019 and 2020; examine progress of participants in the Job ChalleNGe program, which provides additional training to Youth ChalleNGe graduates; and analyze the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on both programs.