Policy Currents | The latest RAND updates
View in Browser: [link removed]


** RAND RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY ON THE ISSUES THAT MATTER MOST
------------------------------------------------------------
Sep 26, 2019

High-Quality Mental Health Care Can Improve Veterans' Lives

During his deployment to Iraq, U.S. Army Sergeant Kurt Power narrowly survived a sniper's bullet. He returned home with a physical scar, but his injuries ran deeper. "I got hit with something I had never felt - and that was fear," he said. "I never expected I would make it, so I never thought I'd have to be the person I was before the war. My family all expected me to be him, and that person no longer exists."

Power's experience is not uncommon: One in five veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan experience the "invisible wounds" of posttraumatic stress disorder or major depression. There are several barriers that make it hard for veterans to get the help they need, but effective treatments are available. A growing body of RAND research shows that veterans who receive high-quality care - as Power did - have the best chance of improving their mental health outcomes.

Read more: [link removed]


How Not to Confront China

Washington is confronting China in a way that may be unlikely to advance U.S. competitiveness or enlist much international support. That's according to RAND's Ali Wyne and James Dobbins, who recently outlined five key concerns with the current U.S. approach. Most notably, the Trump administration hasn't explained what it ultimately hopes to accomplish, they say. This may increase the risk that America will "focus more on a highly improbable quest to contain China than on an eminently achievable effort to renew itself."

Read more: [link removed]


Should the U.S. Offshore Prescription Drug Pricing?

In many countries, the price of a prescription drug is informed by weighing the benefits that drug offers. This is not the case in the United States, where spending on pharmaceuticals is often much higher. Using pricing from overseas to set U.S. drug prices could offer a relatively quick solution to help lower that spending, says RAND's Andrew Mulcahy. Questions about this strategy remain, but it could help achieve a decades-long goal for the U.S. health care system: aligning spending on drugs with value.

Read more: [link removed]


Sexual Harassment in Today's (and Tomorrow's) Workplace

What's different about sexual harassment in the workplace today than in the past? What challenges do employers face in addressing harassment? Can new technologies like machine learning help deal with the problem? In a new Q&A, RAND's Carra Sims tackles these questions and more. Overall, progress is being made on this issue, she says, but "the underlying societal cause of sexual harassment - that women are still not quite seen as equal - remains."

Read more: [link removed]


Understanding the 'Will to Fight'

"Will to fight" - the disposition and decision to fight, to keep fighting, and to win - is arguably the most important factor in war. Why? Because, with few exceptions, all wars and almost all battles are decided by matters of human will. As the focus on technology increases, the essentially human nature of war is largely ignored. A new RAND research brief lays out a path to help fill this dangerous gap in American military practice - and to better understand will to fight.

Read more: [link removed]


Elevate Teachers' Voices, Not Just Their Salaries

Teacher pay raises are a good thing. But small salary increases aren't enough to advance teaching as a lifelong profession, says RAND's Julia Kaufman. Evidence from her recent study of education reform efforts in Louisiana suggests a way forward. The state has focused on fostering leadership among teachers and developing direct lines of communication with educators. Such efforts help to elevate teachers' voices, she says. And they're more likely to make a difference by providing teachers with a clear career ladder.

Read more: [link removed]


** EVENTS
------------------------------------------------------------
RAND Behavioral Finance Forum 2019
October 3, 2019 - Washington, D.C.
[link removed]


The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Work, Health, and Social Well-Being
October 10, 2019 - Pittsburgh, PA
[link removed]


Career Prospects for People with Criminal Records Symposium
October 15, 2019 - Arlington, VA
[link removed]


** TRENDING REPORTS
------------------------------------------------------------
Reimagining the Workforce Development and Employment System for the 21st Century and Beyond
[link removed]


Examining Civic Engagement Links to Health
[link removed]


** RAND IN THE NEWS
------------------------------------------------------------

Trump, Iran's Rouhani Descend on Same Corner of New York but Remain Far Apart
Washington Post
[link removed]


Pittsburgh Researchers Investigate Some of Climate Change's Most Critical Questions
Public Source
[link removed]


Attacks Expose Flaws in Saudi Arabia's Expensive Military
New York Times
[link removed]


** SUBSCRIBE TO THE POLICY CURRENTS PODCAST
------------------------------------------------------------
You already get the latest insights from RAND in your inbox. Why not your earbuds?

Policy Currents is now available as a weekly podcast. Five minutes, every Friday.

Subscribe now: [link removed]


** FOLLOW RAND
------------------------------------------------------------
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis.

[link removed]

Twitter
[link removed]

Facebook
[link removed]

LinkedIn
[link removed]

Instagram
[link removed]


Privacy statement
[link removed]

Unsubscribe
[link removed]

Manage your subscriptions
[link removed]


RAND Corporation
1776 Main Street
Santa Monica, CA 90401-3208

RAND is a registered trademark.