Research for Enlisted Personnel

In this research memorandum, we present the findings of one portion of CNA's Future Russian Navy project, which was requested by the Director of Naval Intelligence. We examine what Russians commonly call 'the human factor' in naval affairs, or the set of issues concerned with attracting and retaining personnel and creating conditions that enable and encourage them to perform their missions. We look at three aspects of the human factor in turn: personnel procurement policy, day-to-day military economics, and the navy's relationship with society and local civilian officials. We discuss how the former Soviet Union traditionally approached each challenge and why the old approaches are failing today. We also describe the way the navy is functioning today, living with the residue of the old system, and adapting to cope with the changed environment. We conclude with an assessment of possible remedies to the Navy's human factor problem, and a discussion of current and prospective trends.

This research memorandum documents analyses of the relationship between Personnel Tempo of Operations (PERSTEMPO) and enlisted retention. CNA's ship employment history files were used to reconstruct the PERSTEMPO experience of each surface ship since the mid-1970s. This PERSTEMPO information was added to the personnel records of sailors making retention decisions while aboard surface ships in the FY 1979 through FY 1988 period. Finally, information on pay, civilian employment opportunities, and bonuses was added to each sailor's record. A statistical regression technique was used to explore the relations between PERSTEMPO and retention. A by-product of the study is updated estimates of the relationship and relative military pay, unemployment rates, and selective reenlistment bonuses.

This research memorandum analyzes the factors underlying the recent growth in the proportion of enlisted Marines that are married or that have dependents. A methodology is applied to break down changes in marriage and dependency rates into the part that is due to changes in the mix of characteristics and the part that is due to changes in behavior.

Hands-on performance tests and job knowledge tests were developed for several motor transport mechanical maintenance specialties as part of the Marine Corps Job Performance Measurement Project. The purpose of this information memorandum is to disseminate these performance measures to Marine Corps personnel managers, training instructors, and interested researchers who may find them useful. This work contains two parts: volume I contains the hands-on performance test, and this volume presents the administrative duties and job knowledge tests.