The Military Family Research Institute (MFRI) at Purdue University today announced the articles included on this year’s Thompson List. The Thompson List recognizes the most important and innovative research studies on military and veteran families published in the prior year and serves as a resource for organizations seeking evidence-based guidance in their work with military and veteran families.
This year’s Thompson List includes:
- Brief family involvement enhances veteran homework quality during trauma-focused psychotherapy. Authored by Michelle Fernando, Robert Fite and Johanna Thompson-Hollands.
- Understanding factors associated with mental health treatment discharge outcomes among military-connected children and adolescents. Authored by Seonyeong Kim, Kate Sullivan, Whitney Wortham, Yuhui Huang, Fan Zhang, Steven Lancaster and David Linkh
- Social role violations in a greedy institution: genders, spouses’ military status, and servicemembers’ marital problems. Authored by Erika King, Elissa Hack, Graeme Bicknell, Brynn Crownover and Mark Oliver.
- Reunion after deployment: describing findings from a study of military couples funded by the U.S. department of defense. Authored by Leanne Knobloch, Lynne Knobloch-Fedders and Jeremy Yorgason.
- Marital quality and loneliness among aging vietnam-era combat veterans: the moderating role of ptsd symptom severity. Authored by Christina Marini, Jeremy Yorgason, Anica Pless Kaiser and Lance Erickson.
- Risk factors for homelessness among post-9/11 era veterans. Authored by Stephen Metraux, Claire Kolaja, Baylee Crone, Thomas Byrne, Rudolph Rull and Ben Porter.
- Strengthening connections: A randomized controlled trial examining the impact of a supervisor support intervention on loneliness and military couple relationships. Authored by Cynthia Mohr, AnnaMarie O’Neill, Jacquelyn Brady, Todd Bodner, Tori Crain and Leslie Hammer.
- Qualitative analysis of the lived experience of reproductive and pediatric health care in the military health care system. Authored by Megan Musilli, Shara Fuller, Brelahn Wyatt, Teri Ryals, Gayle Haischer-Rollo, Caitlin Drumm, Rasheda Vereen, Torie Plowden, Erin Blevins, Carmen Spalding, Abigail Konopasky and Monica Lutgendorf.
- Finances and fights: how military members’ financial attitudes and behaviors are linked to romantic relationship processes and outcomes. Authored by Clairee Peterson, Catherine Walker O’Neal, Mallory Lucier-Greer and Rachel Okamoto.
- Caregiver emotional wellbeing is related to nursing home admissions among veterans. Authored by Megan Shepherd-Banigan, Zhen Li, Pujan Patel, Imari Smith, Jeanie Lo, Nadya Majette, Josephine Jacobs, Melissa Gersten-Harris, Timothy Jobin, Anushka Pai, Courtney Van Houtven and Katherine Miller.
The 2026 Thompson List is available on the MFRI website at mfri.purdue.edu/research-topic/thompson-list/. Each publication will feature a Translating Research into Practice (TRIP) Report, developed by partners at Military REACH at Auburn University. These reports summarize the key findings and implications of each article, making the research more accessible for practitioners, policymakers and more.
The Thompson List is part of The Thompson, a unified platform which allows MFRI to elevate research and ensure evidence-based insights reach practitioners working with military and veteran families. The Thompson consists of The Thompson Award, The Thompson List and The Thompson Forum. All articles included on The Thompson List are also considered for The Thompson Award. Finalists for the award will be announced on Monday, October 26, 2026. More information about The Thompson can be found by visiting mfri.purdue.edu/thompson.
The Thompson Award
Established in 2015 as the Excellence in Research on Military and Veteran Families Award, The Thompson Award recognizes the best new research on military and veteran families each year. Finalists are selected through a rigorous, multi-stage review process by a panel of leading scholars, and the winner is announced at The Thompson Forum.
The Thompson Forum
The Thompson Forum brings together leading researchers, non-profits, policymakers, and business leaders to foster connections and partnerships that advance research and practice. The 2026 Forum will be held on Thursday, December 10, at the Association for the United States Army (AUSA) headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. More details, including registration, will be released in the coming weeks.
About MFRI
Founded in 2000, the Military Family Research Institute (MFRI) at Purdue University conducts research on issues that affect military and veteran families and works to shape policies, programs and practices that improve their well-being. MFRI envisions a diverse support community that understands and addresses the most pressing needs of military and veteran families. To achieve this, MFRI collaborates to create meaningful solutions for them. This internationally recognized organization is housed in Purdue University’s College of Health and Human Sciences, in the Department of Human Development and Family Science.