Loneliness and Belonging for Service Members and Veterans

Social isolation has been identified as a grand challenge of social work. Military affiliated communities experience with this challenge is associated with occupational demands of the field and acculturated beliefs within military culture. The ramifications of prolonged, unmitigated isolation may contribute to the intractable problem of military suicide. This presentation details the problem and solution landscape with particular focus on strength-based, macro level interventions that hold multidimensional identity at the core.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the training participants will be able to: 

1. Define social isolation, loneliness, and belonging.

2. Identify specific occupational requirements and cultural norms that are important to consider when mitigating experiences of isolation and loneliness in the military.

3. Apply theory and practical approaches to increase belonging and mattering for military affiliated population.