Special Operations Forces Language and Culture Needs Assessment: Non-Monetary Incentives

Abstract

This report identified non-monetary incentives that motivate Special Operations Forces (SOF) operators to acquire and maintain language proficiency. SOF operators who participated in this study reported being more motivated by non-monetary incentives than by monetary incentives (i.e., Foreign Language Proficiency Bonus; FLPB). Specifically, SOF operators rated five non-monetary incentives as more motivating than monetary incentives: saving lives/force protection, mission success, supporting the team, immersion opportunities, and self-development. Results suggest that an ideal combination of both monetary and non-monetary incentives should be provided to SOF operators to maximize language training motivation.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 09, 2010
Accession Number
ADA634200

Entities

People

  • Eric A. Surface
  • Natalie Wright
  • Nathaniel W. Phillips
  • Reanna Poncheri Harman
  • Sarah C. Bienkowski
  • Stephen J. Ward

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Applied Psychology
  • Attrition
  • Data Analysis
  • Department Of Defense
  • Deployment
  • Education
  • Force Protection
  • Foreign Languages
  • Human Behavior
  • Language
  • Motivation
  • Personnel Management
  • Special Operations Forces
  • Training
  • United States
  • United States Special Operations Command

Readers

  • Computational Linguistics
  • Irregular Warfare and Special Operations Cyberspace Operations against Adversarial Threats.
  • Naval Personnel Management