Millennium Cohort Study of Adolescent Resilience

Launched in 2022, the Study of Adolescent Resilience is the most comprehensive Department of War study dedicated to understanding the psychosocial adjustment, physical health, academic achievement and career aspirations of military-connected adolescents. Embedded within the larger Millennium Cohort Study, SOAR employs a longitudinal, multi-informant design, collecting self-report data from adolescents and their parents, which is then linked with military administrative and medical records. This unique approach allows for a deep exploration of how military life impacts youth from adolescence into early adulthood, aiming to identify modifiable risk and protective factors to inform policies and programs that not only support military families but also directly enhance service member readiness by reducing distraction, underperformance and separation from service.

SOAR includes:

• Multiple respondents: service member/veteran, co-parent and adolescent (ages 11-17) from all branches, ranks and components
• Longitudinal data: baseline (2022/23) with adolescent follow-up in 2024/25 & 2026/27
• Linked data: Survey data are linked to numerous military databases, such as medical, pharmaceutical, occupational and readiness assessments.

Analyses use predictive models that control for covariates (age, sex, baseline mental health, branch, pay grade), making them substantially more powerful than convenience samples or cross-sectional data.

SOAR’s findings help the DOW direct and tailor programs and services to address the health and well-being of military-connected adolescents.

Baseline results from the survey covering the 2022-2023 school year were released in September 2025.

The 2024-2025 adolescent follow-up study findings provide predictive insights on retention or separation from service, adolescent mental health problems and school adjustment after a PCS move that build on the baseline SOAR data and deepen understanding of military-connected adolescents.

Key findings include:

• Service members whose adolescents supported their continued military service were nearly 60% less likely to separate from the military.
• Adolescents were significantly less likely to screen for depression and anxiety in 2024/2025 when they reported a positive school environment in 2022/2023.
• Adolescents were significantly less likely to screen for depression and anxiety when they reported having an easy time changing schools after a PCS move.

SOAR Survey Archive

Survey findings, briefings and infographics from previous years can be found in the archive.

Interested in seeing the tabulation data for the 2022/2023 baseline survey? Log in with your CAC to view the full report.