In addition to the general stresses in the lives of those ages 3 to 17, military-connected children face challenges that can affect their mental health and exacerbate a stressful time in their development. This report presents findings from a mental and behavioral health needs assessment of military-connected children in the context of military child development centers and youth programs and schools with a significant military child population.

Assessing the Needs of Military-Connected Children and Resources to Address Those Needs

Laurie T. Martin, Thomas E. Trail, Jennifer Jeffries

ResearchPublished Mar 20, 2025

There is a growing concern around the mental and behavioral health of children and youth as such conditions as anxiety disorders, depression, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and conduct disorders affect almost one in five children and youth ages 3 to 17. The coronavirus pandemic brought many challenges: Children missed years of in-person schooling and socialization, experienced increased social isolation, and developed an overreliance on technology and social media to stay connected, entertained, and participate in online schooling. Collectively, studies suggest that children and youth have experienced, and will continue to experience, a wide variety of mental and behavioral health concerns that can affect their academic performance, social interactions, well-being, and overall quality of life.

In addition to the general stresses and strains in the lives of children and youth, military-connected children and youth face distinct challenges—such as family separation and frequent moves—that can directly or indirectly affect children’s mental health and exacerbate an already stressful time in their development. To help inform an ongoing commitment to military-connected children and youth, the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy asked RAND to assess the needs of military-connected children in the context of military child development centers, military youth programs, and schools with a significant military child population. This report provides findings from this mental and behavioral health needs assessment.

Key Findings

  • Current and emerging needs generally varied by setting given the different ages and stages of children and youth.
  • Across settings, most directors and principals indicated that they had the resources to address most needs of military-connected children but would need additional resources to focus on needs in the future as the prevalence of these concerns grows.
  • Additional strategies are needed to better support children, youth, parents, and the teachers and staff who care for military-connected children and youth, but many directors and principals indicated that they did not have the resources to implement those strategies.

Recommendations

  • Facilitate the identification of evidence-based resources to address current and emerging needs of students. To support teachers and staff in the identification of best practices and evidenced-based programs, such content could be curated and housed in a searchable database with relevant filters for topic and age-appropriateness (e.g., for elementary-age children).
  • Strengthen staff, school, and child and youth wellness programs. To minimize teacher burnout and ensure that teachers and staff are able to perform at their best, staff wellness programs that teach strategies—such as mindfulness or adult social-emotional learning—could be implemented to improve the well-being, self-efficacy, sense of appreciation, and sense of belonging among staff.
  • Provide parent resources and training. Parent training was cited by principals and directors as one of the highest needs and could have the potential for high impact because resources can be shared and approaches to managing a concern in the school setting can be shared and applied at home for consistent support across settings. Creative solutions to ensuring that parents have access to accurate, high-quality information and best practices are needed.

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RAND Style Manual

Martin, Laurie T., Thomas E. Trail, and Jennifer Jeffries, Assessing the Needs of Military-Connected Children and Resources to Address Those Needs, RAND Corporation, RR-A463-2, 2025. As of April 16, 2025: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA463-2.html

Chicago Manual of Style

Martin, Laurie T., Thomas E. Trail, and Jennifer Jeffries, Assessing the Needs of Military-Connected Children and Resources to Address Those Needs. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2025. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA463-2.html.
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This research was sponsored by the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy and conducted within the Personnel, Readiness, and Health Program of the RAND National Security Research Division.

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