Targeted Violence Prevention for the Veteran and Military Family Community

Targeted violence, including criminal extremism, is a threat affecting the whole nation. Veterans and military family members are not immune from the threat–as targets or as perpetrators. START, with the support of We the Veterans and Military Families (WtV), developed the following micro-learnings for the veteran and military family community in an effort to increase awareness of the issue of extremism, to provide research-supported facts about extremism, and to offer actionable solutions for all those that care about veteran communities.

The 11 micro-learnings include a mix of interactive infographics and videos specific to the veteran and military families that will walk you through the issue of extremism, specific risk factors and observable indicators, the public health model for response, and what to look out for to help prevent future extremism and violence.

If you have any questions or feedback after viewing, please reach out to START at infostart@umd.edu or We the Veterans at info@wetheveterans.us.

To access more learning products about how to recognize and resist exposure to misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation, visit the PsychArmor website for The Battle for the Truth video series, a complementary effort led by We the Veterans as part of the Veterans Preventing Misinformation and Violence Project.

This project is funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, opportunity number DHS-22-TTP-132-00-01.

Understand Extremism Learn about Prevention Build Awareness about Extremist Narratives

Understand Extremism

Prevalence of Extremists with U.S. Military Backgrounds

This infographic is intended to build understanding among veterans and military families about the prevalence of extremism among those with military backgrounds.

Extremism in the Military: Ideological and Group Affiliations

This infographic is intended to build understanding among veterans and military families about extremist groups and movements that are represented among those with military backgrounds who commit acts of criminal extremism.

Understanding Mass Casualty Extremist Offenders with U.S. Military Backgrounds

This infographic is intended to build understanding among veterans and military family bystanders about mass casualty crimes committed by those with military backgrounds.

Learn about Prevention

Criminal Extremists with Military Background: Risk and Protective Factors

This video is intended to build understanding among veterans and military families about risk factors that are common among criminal extremists with military backgrounds as well as protective factors that, when present, make it less likely for a person to engage in criminal extremism.

Observable Mobilization Indicators

This video is intended to build understanding among veteran and military family bystanders about observable mobilization to violence indicators that may be used to help prevent an attack.

Public Health Model: Targeted Violence Prevention

This video is intended to build understanding among active military, veterans and military families, and those that serve them about how the public health model applies to targeted violence prevention.

Targeted Violence Public Health Model for Military and Veterans (intended for active military, military family members, and MSOs)

This video is intended to build understanding among active military, military families, and those that serve them about how the public health model applies to targeted violence prevention in the military community.

Targeted Violence Public Health Model for Military and Veterans (intended for veterans, family member bystanders, and VSOs)

This video is intended to build understanding among veterans, their families, and those that serve them about how the public health model applies to targeted violence prevention in the veteran community.

Build Awareness about Extremist Narratives

Narratives as a Tool for Extremist Recruitment

This video is intended to build understanding among active military, veterans, their families, and those that serve them about extremist narratives used to recruit those with military backgrounds.

Extremist Recruitment: Exploiting Grievances

This video is intended to build awareness among active military, veterans, their families, and those that serve them about how extremists exploit both real and imagined grievances to recruit those with military backgrounds.

Protecting Against Extremist Narratives

This video is intended to build awareness among active military, veterans, their families, and those that serve them about ways that the military and veteran communities can protect against extremist narratives targeting those with a military background.