Gender Differences in Post-Bootcamp, Pre-Fleet Losses
Abstract
Despite increases in the female share of Navy accessions and in womens entry qualifications over the last several decades, growth in female representation in theinventory has not kept pace. We examine one specific driver of the female share of the inventory: differential losses between bootcamp and reaching the fleet by gender. We find that the issue of higher female loss rates is not a general one. Rather, it is concentrated in highly technical ratings, such as the Advanced Electronics and Computer Field, Nuclear Field, and some Cryptologic Technician specialties. Evidence from loss codes and reenlistment recommendation codes suggests that health (physical and mental) and family issuesnot behavioral problemsmay be behind these higher female losses. Yet, the timing of these health- and family-related losses is puzzling given that these Sailors successfully completed bootcamp. We conclude with a set of recommendations that, if adopted, could provide the Navy with a more detailed understanding of why there is a sizable gender gap in attrition rates in these highly technical ratings.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2018
- Accession Number
- AD1063699
Entities
People
- Ann D. Parcell
- David L. Reese
- Steven W. Belcher
- Thomas M. Geraghty
Organizations
- Center for Naval Analyses