Occupational and Personnel Correlates of First-Term Enlisted Tenure in the Air Force
Abstract
Traditionally, researchers concerned with enlisted airmen separation and attrition have focused primarily on personnel characteristics associated with those losses. In contrast, studies from the civilian sector have routinely examined the effects of both personnel characteristics and occupational data associated with turnover rates. This research was designed to assess the interactive effects of Air Force occupational specialty and personnel characteristics on predictions of tenure for first-term enlisted airmen. A set of multiple linear regression equations was developed to examine the occupational and personnel correlates associated with airmen tenure. Predictions of both tenure criteria were highly significant based on the specialty model as were those based on the personnel model. A test of the third model against the fourth model revealed that predictions of tenure are differentially influenced by the combination of personnel characteristics specific to each specialty. This finding suggests that tenure applications should be made on an individual occupational basis considering each specialty as a separate predictive framework. A follow-on analysis substantive predictive efficiency was associated with the occupational model as well as with the personnel characteristics model. Demonstrations of the prediction system applied to a 5% random sample of airmen were also included for consideration by personnel selection and assignment managers to emphasize the effects that occupational assignment strategies would have on increasing airmen tenure in the first term.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1983
- Accession Number
- ADA132346
Entities
People
- Kenn Finstuen
- William E. Alley
Organizations
- Air Force Research Laboratory