Development of New Military Applicant Profile (MAP) Autobiographical Questionnaires for Use in Predicting Early Army Attrition

摘要

The Army uses two operational forms of the Military Applicant Profile (MAP) to screen for early attrition among non-high school graduate males. The purpose of this research was to develop new forms of MAP which would be valid predictors of early attrition for women as well as men, and for high school graduates as well as non-graduates. An experimental autobiographical questionnaire of 240 items was prepared, consisting of 85 currently operational MAP items, seven previously developed items, and 148 new items. About one-third of the new items were drawn from experimental questionnaires developed by the other military services. The questionnaire was administered to 2,073 Army applicants in 39 Military Entrance Processing Stations and to 12,024 Army enlistees at seven Reception Stations. Attrition data were available for 9,603 Regular Army cases, which included 8,200 still enlisted at the end of 180 days of service and 1,403 who had been discharged for failure to adapt. Included were 7,755 men and 1,848 women; 8,312 high school graduates and 1,291 non-high school graduates. The questionnaires were item analyzed to produce two new forms of MAP for use in predicting early attrition. Each form includes a subset of keyed items for use with non-high school graduates. Utility analyses indicate that the new forms have the potential for making a major contribution to reducing attrition.