Air Force Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Programs and Services

Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) programs and services are considered an integral part of resilient and ready Airmen and families. However, the Air Force currently lacks an evidence-informed evaluation framework for MWR programs, especially one thatidentifies short-term and intermediate outcomes that contribute to Airman and family resilience and readiness. A necessary first step in determining the possible impact of the MWR portfolio is to identify, and then assess, the contributions of each individual program or service. To understand the ways that MWR programs can contribute to resilience and readiness, the Air Force asked RAND researchers to develop an evidence-informed framework that links program and service activities to such outcomes and provides guidance on collecting and managing the data needed to measure those outcomes. To accomplish this, the authors developed a model of resilience and readiness building blocks-that is, precursors to overall resilience and readiness identified through a review of existing literature. They then used this model as the basis for comparing the building blocks and short-term and intermediate outcomes targeted by programs and services within the MWR portfolio. Together, these two efforts allow the Air Force to examine whether and how the MWR portfolio could be used to foster resilience and readiness across the total force. The report concludes with a discussion of next steps that the Air Force can take to move closer to evaluating the capabilities of the MWRportfolio with respect to enhancing Airman and family resilience and readiness.