USAF OFFICER CAREER DECISIONS: PREDICTABILITY OF INITIAL CAREER INTENT,
Abstract
A survey sample of newly-commissioned officers drawn from all procurement sources completed a questionnaire concerned with personal data and attitudes toward and Air Force career. Responses were validated against the criterion item of stated career intent. A key developed on half of the sample was applied to the other half with a resulting correlation of .43 between the empirical score and statement of expressed career intent. Descriptions of career and noncareer officers emerged from response frequencies to the personal and biographical items. More of the noncareer entering officers are single, had a stable home life, were in the upper third of their class, attended private schools, and had a specialized college major; while more of the career officers are married, had a transient home life, began working early, attended state universities, and were in the middle third of their class. A previously derived 'Retainability Score' proved only moderately predictive of expressed career intentions. Sources with the most favorable career-noncareer ratios were the service academies and the now-defunct Officer Candidate School. These ratios determined at time of commissioning formed much the same pattern and were only slightly higher than actual retention ratios previously determined for other samples. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1965
- Accession Number
- AD0613333
Entities
People
- Faye Ewing
- Ray W. Alvord