The hallmark of America’s armed forces is the ability to recruit and retain the best men and women—service members needed to deter war and to protect the security of our country (Presidential Study Directive 9, 2001). In 2001, the 9/11 terrorist attacks shocked the nation, considerably altering generational agendas and ideologies, and shattering the sense of insulation and invulnerability. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a roadmap for future generations of military community and family policy leaders, who, when faced with conflicts, can meet goals related to the recruitment, retention, morale, and operational readiness of the United States Armed Forces by analyzing the Department of Defense’s (DoD) challenges and responses to 16+ years of post-9/11 deployments. Within the chapter, we concentrate on describing information and operational flows within DoD. The development of an empirically informed understanding of military families’ critical impact on service members’ readiness and their resilience is part of the Department’s mission. And, with this knowledge, DoD has the responsibility to establish programs and policies that support military family members’ resilience and well-being as a matter of national security.

1. 1.

   There are four other major functions that support military family readiness that are included in the P&R portfolio, i.e., medical benefits, financial readiness, commissaries, and military children’s education that will not be addressed in this chapter.

2. 2.

   See Department of Defense(DoD). (2012). DoD Instruction 1342.22 Military Family Readiness (published on July 03, 2012). Available atwww.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/134222p.pdf

3. 3.

   The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University conducted the Military Family Needs Assessment from September 2009 through April 2010. The study found that service members were worried about potential negative consequences and stigma to use those resources. Final report is available athttp://download.militaryonesource.mil/12038/Project%20Documents/MilitaryHOMEFRONT/Reports/MFNA_2010_Report.pdf

Authors and Affiliations

1. Manassas, VA, USA

   Barbara Thompson M.S.

2. Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Military Family Research Institute, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

   Keisha M. Bailey B.A.

Corresponding author

Correspondence toBarbara Thompson M.S..

Editors and Affiliations

1. Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Military Family Research Institute College of Health and Human Sciences Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA

   Linda Hughes-Kirchubel

2. Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Military Family Research Institute, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA

   Shelley MacDermid Wadsworth

3. Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

   David S. Riggs

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