We are no longer enrolling new participants.

Thank you for your interest in the Better Together Study. All of our retreats have been filled and we are no longer enrolling new participants.

If you have any questions, please email BetterTogetherStudy@usuhs.edu

Designed for military couples and

the challenges you face.

Leading experts have teamed up with military collaborators to create Get Better Together, a relationship enrichment retreat that will present evidence-informed strategies that you and your partner can use to strengthen your relationship and cope with stressors as a unified team.

Your participation will offer us critical feedback to make sure Get Better Together is helpful and accessible to military couples like you. You can help us understand whether the program is feasible, helpful, and how it may impact relationship resiliency and mental wellbeing.

We are looking for military couples that are willing to:

  • Attend a Friday to Sunday relationship enrichment retreat with their romantic partner

  • Complete a series of questionnaires before and up to 3-months after the retreat

 Who is Eligible?

  • Photo by Brian J. Clark Productions LLC

    Active Duty Military.

    Either you and/or your romantic partner need to be an active duty Service Member.

  • In a Committed Relationship.

    You and your romantic partner must currently live together and be in a committed relationship of at least six months.

  • Over 18 and Fluent in English.

    Both partners must be over 18 and fluent in English.

  • Available to Attend a Retreat.

    Both you and your romantic partner should be available to attend one of our upcoming weekend retreats. Additionally, neither partner should expect to deploy within the next three months—that is when you would be answering questionnaires.

What Would You Do?

  • Attend a Retreat.

    You and your romantic partner will be asked to attend a Get Better Together retreat. There is no cost to you; food and lodging will be provided. During Get Better Together you will learn evidence-informed strategies that you can use to strengthen your relationship and cope with stressors as a unified team. More information can be found here.

  • Answer Questionnaires.

    You will be asked to complete online questionnaires before attending the retreat and 1, 2, and 3 months after the retreat. There will also be a paper-and-pencil questionnaire immediately following the retreat. Questionnaires will ask about your relationship and mental wellbeing.

  • Give Feedback.

    You will have the opportunity to attend a focus group to share your thoughts about the program. Your feedback will help shape the program for future military couples.

Learn More

  • The goal of this study is to test Get Better Together with up to 50 Service Members and their romantic partners. Your participation will help us understand whether the program is feasible, helpful, and how it may impact mental health and relationship functioning.

  • 1. Complete a Brief Eligibility Questionnaire and Informed Consent: To join the study, you will first need to complete a brief eligibility questionnaire, and then review and sign informed consent. Both you and your romantic partner will need to go through this process independently to enroll in the study.

    2. Complete an Online Pre-Retreat Questionnaire [Up to 60 Minutes]: Before attending a Get Better Together retreat, you will be asked to complete an online questionnaire packet about your romantic relationship and mental health.

    3. Attend a Relationship Education Retreat [2-3 Days]: You and your romantic partner will be asked to attend a 2-3 day weekend retreat. Food and lodging will be provided. Sessions will be led by Navy Chaplains Religious Enrichment Development Operation (CREDO) facilitators and will consist of group activities and discussions, brief lectures, videos, and skills practice. Before leaving the retreat, you will be asked to complete a Post-Retreat Questionnaire to provide feedback on the retreat and answer questions about your romantic relationship and mental health.

    4. OPTIONAL: Attend a Focus Group [Approximately 60 Minutes]: Following the retreat, you will have the option to participate in a focus group to provide additional feedback about Get Better Together.

    5. Complete Online Follow-Up Questionnaires [Up to 45 Minutes Each]: You will be asked to complete online questionnaires 1-month, 2-months, and 3-months after attending the retreat. These questionnaires will ask about your romantic relationship and mental health.

    Please note that retreat sessions will be audio recorded to ensure that facilitators are following correct procedures. The optional focus groups will also be audio recorded. Once our research staff has analyzed the recordings for quality control and/or to collect feedback, the audio recordings will be permanently deleted.

  • Yes, you and your romantic partner can each earn up to $90 for your participation. You will be compensated $15 for the Focus Group, $20 for the 1-Month Follow-Up Questionnaire, $25 for the 2-Month Follow-Up Questionnaire, and $30 for the 3-Month Follow-Up Questionnaire. If you are an active duty Service Member, these activities must be completed during off-duty hours.

  • You are eligible to participate if:

    1. You and/or your romantic partner are currently an active-duty Navy Service Member

    2. You are in a committed relationship and currently live together

    3. Neither you nor your romantic partner anticipates a deployment within the next 3 months

    4. You and your romantic partner are both over 18 years old and fluent in English

    5. You and your romantic partner anticipate being available to attend an upcoming retreat.

  • The Department of Defense is funding the development and evaluation of this program through the Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC; Award Number: W81XWH-21-9-0011).

Questions?

BetterTogetherStudy@usuhs.edu
(301) 400-5675