Integrating Social Networks and Team Intervention Approaches to Reduce Ostracism in the Military

RPP MTEC-21-05-Cross-cutting Integrating Social Networks and Team Intervention Approaches to Reduce Ostracism in the Military Abstract: We respond to the call on developing effective primary prevention programming to optimize health promotion and prevent various forms of violent, abusive, and harmful acts within military contexts. We focus on the phenomenon of ostracism, the experience of being excluded or ignored by others, as a proximal factor that leads to both self-directed (e.g., psychological health issues, alcohol and substance misuse, suicide ideation) and other-directed (e.g., harassment, sexual violence) harmful behaviors. We propose a 3 year plan to 1) partner with military units to identify salient factors that lead to ostracism; 2) design and implement an evidence-based intervention to reduce ostracism in the military; 3) test the effectiveness of a team-based intervention on reducing ostracism in a randomized controlled trial. This proposal is novel in that it moves beyond the typical individual-centered and clinically-focused approach to adopt a network and team-based approach to prevent a phenomenon that leads to more severe forms of harmful acts in the military.