Research On The Selection Of Officer Candidates And Cadets

The objective of the CADET LEADERS Task is to develop and refine psychological measures for use in primary officer selection and evaluation programs, specifically in selecting students for the Reserve Officer Training Corps, the Army Officer Candidate Schools, and the U.S. Military Academy. Technical Research Report 1146 describes selection procedures now in effect for each of the programs and states the research basis for the measures used. The report also surveys current research requirements for officer procurement programs recently expanded by Act of Congress, research needed to adapt selection procedures to current OCS training requirements, and special studies for the USMA. Continuing research has resulted in the development, operational implementation, and refinement of tests of mental ability, physical proficiency, and leadership used in selecting cadets and officer candidates. Two new forms of the ROTC Qualifying Examination, RQ-8 and RQ-9, developed to screen students for admittance to the Senior ROTC Division (Military Science III) were implemented in the spring of 1966. A Basic ROTC Examination developed and validated for screening MS I students will be available for operational use in the fall of 1966. Further research will be undertaken to increase the effectiveness of screening and selection programs in conjunction with an intensive study of officer and leadership qualities as they emerge at the USMA and after commissioning.

In the continuation of psychological research for the United States Military Academy, initiated during WW II, effort has been largely concerned with improving selection procedures and with evaluating achievement in various aspects of the primary officer training programs. The present report deals with research undertaken in a series of projects covering the period 1 January 1957 through 31 December 1962. The two major problems with which the current research has been concerned are prediction of success of WP graduates in officer assignments of various types and at various levels, and identification of those applicants who show leadership potential and who also are motivated to complete USMA training and subsequent Regular Army officer careers. A number of instruments were developed and administered with the objective of supplementing current selection measures to provide more adequate assessment of motivation and leadership potential. Earlier findings were reinforced in that the Aptitude for the Service Rating (ASR) continues to maintain its predictive superiority over other WP measures with reference to later performance on both field grade and company grade officers. Continuing validity studies and extended follow-up research hold promise for provision of guidance to the USMA in evaluating training given to cadets.

The Air Force's use of selection and classification test instruments for officer personnel started early in World War II with the development and use of the Aviation Cadet Qualifying Test and the Aircrew Classification Batteries. Current officer testing programs developed from research on the aircrew batteries and from a second line of research with the Aviation-Cadet Officer-Candidate Qualifying Test which began in 1949. This report gives a resume of the officer selection and classification programs from 1941 to 1961, and describes the various test instruments on their content and use.