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Officer Classification and the Future of Diversity Among Senior Military Leaders
A Case Study of the Army ROTC
Defense Department officials have expressed concern about the fact that officers who reach the top ranks of the military tend to come from career fields that are disproportionately occupied by whites. The relative lack of minorities in these fields has a significant impact on the diversity of the senior leadership. The authors examine the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps classification process and find that that there is a relationship between career field selection, racial/ethnic status, and membership in the senior officer corps — a connection that appears to stem, at least in part, from racial and ethnic differences in the occupational preferences of officer cadets. Because the reasons behind these preferences are still unknown, the authors urge a full-scale study of the issue.
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Pages: 58
ISBN/EAN: 9780833048028
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Contents
Chapter One:
Introduction
Chapter Two:
Theoretical Determinants of Individual Career Field Decisions
Chapter Three:
Career Field Assignment Process: Rules and Practices
Chapter Four:
Career Field Assignment Process: Quantitative Analysis
Chapter Five:
Policy Discussion and Recommendations
Appendix:
Detailed Description of Classification Processes
The research described in this report was prepared for the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD). This research was conducted under the auspices of the Forces and Resources Policy Center of the RAND National Defense Research Institute, a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the OSD, the Joint Staff, the Unified Combatant Commands, the Department of the Navy, the Marine Corps, the defense agencies, and the defense Intelligence Community.
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