Thomas E. Trail

Thomas E. Trail is a Senior Behavioral Scientist at RAND Corporation and a Professor of Policy Analysis at the RAND School of Public Policy. His work bridges behavioral science and public policy, with a strong emphasis on military and civilian family well-being. He is based at RAND, a leading policy research organization, where he leads multiple high-impact studies on military families, caregiver support, and stress-related outcomes.

• Ph.D. in Social Psychology, Princeton University
• M.S. in Applied/Experimental Psychology, Virginia Tech
• Postdoctoral Scholar, UCLA

Trail's research focuses on how stress affects relationships and health outcomes among couples, particularly in military contexts. His expertise spans military families, poverty, food insecurity, marriage and divorce, and caregiver mental health. He designs and evaluates interventions aimed at reducing family stress and improving support systems.

His recent publications reveal a consistent focus on military family readiness, deployment impacts, and program evaluation. Key themes include the effectiveness of non-medical counseling, spouse employment programs like MyCAA, and the hidden challenges faced by military caregivers. His work often informs policy decisions at the Department of Defense and Congress.

Trail has received no explicitly listed scientific awards in the provided text, but his body of work—including over 60 research outputs—demonstrates significant scholarly impact. He has led evaluations of major military programs, developed policy tools, and contributed to national studies on caregiver burden and family resilience.

While there is no mention of formal students or advisees, Trail leads research teams and contributes to mentoring through collaborative projects. He has secured funding for and directed large-scale studies such as the Today's Army Spouse Panel and evaluations of National Guard Youth ChalleNGe. His future work appears to center on long-term outcomes of military support programs and the socioeconomic challenges facing service members and their families.

Trail is actively involved in research labs and teams focused on military family policy, behavioral health, and program evaluation at RAND. He has developed methodological tools for assessing program effectiveness and continues to publish on emerging issues like food insecurity in the armed forces. His work is instrumental in shaping evidence-based policies for military communities.