What Factors Affect the Military Enlistment of Hispanic Youth?

What Factors Affect the Military Enlistment of Hispanic Youth?
Author: Beth J. Asch
Publisher:
Total Pages: 90
Release: 2005
Genre: History
ISBN:

An ongoing concern of Congress, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), and the armed services is the social representation of the military, particularly of active duty accessions. Hispanics are a growing segment of the youth population yet have been underrepresented historically among military accessions. The widely cited reason is their below-average rate of graduation from high school and the services2 preference for diploma graduate recruits. But other less-studied factors may contribute. These other possible factors may include lack of language proficiency as reflected in their applicant aptitude test scores, fertility choices, health factors such as obesity, and involvement in risky activities such as the use of illegal drugs. These factors could adversely affect the ability of some Hispanic youth to meet service enlistment standards. The RAND Corporation project 3Hispanic Youth in the United States and the Factors Affecting Their Enlistment4 is conducting an analysis of the factors that lead to the underrepresentation of Hispanic youth in the military. This documented briefing summarizes interim results from the research effort2s first year. First, it highlights the various enlistments standards recruits must meet in each branch of service. Then using available data on American young adults, it summarizes the degree to which Hispanic youth qualify for service relative to youth who are members of other racial and ethnic groups. This documented briefing is intended for individuals interested in military recruiting and in the population representation of personnel in the armed forces.

Military Enlistment of Hispanic Youth

Military Enlistment of Hispanic Youth
Author: Beth J. Asch
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Total Pages: 223
Release: 2009-01-14
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0833046780

Although polls of Hispanic youth show a strong propensity to serve in the military, Hispanics are nonetheless underrepresented among military recruits. The authors discuss the major characteristics that disproportionately disqualify Hispanic youth and explore actions that could be taken to increase Hispanic enlistments.

Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Aspirations of American Youth

Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Aspirations of American Youth
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 343
Release: 2003-02-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0309085314

Recruiting an all-volunteer military is a formidable task. To successfully enlist one eligible recruit, the Army must contact approximately 120 young people. The National Research Council explores the various factors that will determine whether the military can realistically expect to recruit an adequate fighting force-one that will meet its upcoming needs. It also assesses the military's expected manpower needs and projects the numbers of youth who are likely to be available over the next 20 years to meet these needs. With clearly written text and useful graphics, Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Aspirations of American Youth offers an overview of important issues for military recruiters, touching on a number of important topics including: sex and race, education and aptitude, physical and moral attributes, and military life and working conditions. In addition, the book looks at how a potential recruit would approach the decision to enlist, considering personal, family, and social values, and the options for other employment or college. Building on the need to increase young Americans' "propensity to enlist," this book offers useful recommendations for increasing educational opportunities while in the service and for developing advertising strategies that include concepts of patriotism and duty to country. Of primary value to military policymakers, recruitment officers, and analysts, Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Aspirations of American Youth will also interest social scientists and policy makers interested in youth trends.

What Factors Affect the Military Enlistment of Hispanic Youth? A Look at Enlistment Qualifications

What Factors Affect the Military Enlistment of Hispanic Youth? A Look at Enlistment Qualifications
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 74
Release: 2005
Genre:
ISBN:

An ongoing concern of Congress, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), and the armed services is the social representation of the military. As there is virtually no lateral entry, a key concern in particular is the social representation of active duty accessions. Hispanics are a growing segment of the youth population, yet they have been underrepresented historically among military accessions. The widely cited reason is their below-average rate of graduation from high school and the services' preference for diploma graduate recruits. But other less-studied factors may contribute. These other possible factors may include lack of language proficiency as reflected in their applicant aptitude test scores, fertility choices, health factors such as obesity, and involvement in risky activities such as the use of illegal drugs. These factors could adversely affect the ability of some Hispanic youth to meet service enlistment standards. RAND's project "Hispanic Youth in the United States and the Factors Affecting Their Enlistment" is conducting an analysis of the factors that lead to the underrepresentation of Hispanic youth in the military. This documented briefing provides a summary of interim results from the first year of the research effort. First, it highlights the various enlistment standards recruits must meet in each branch of service. Then, using available data on American young adults, it summarizes the degree to which Hispanic youth qualify for service relative to youth who are members of other racial and ethnic groups. A more detailed summary of the first-year analysis, together with the summary of the results of the second year, will be published in a final report for the project. This documented briefing is intended for individuals interested in military recruiting and in the population representation of personnel in the armed forces.

Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment

Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 264
Release: 2006-02-27
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309164877

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) faces short-term and long-term challenges in selecting and recruiting an enlisted force to meet personnel requirements associated with diverse and changing missions. The DoD has established standards for aptitudes/abilities, medical conditions, and physical fitness to be used in selecting recruits who are most likely to succeed in their jobs and complete the first term of service (generally 36 months). In 1999, the Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment was established by the National Research Council (NRC) in response to a request from the DoD. One focus of the committee's work was to examine trends in the youth population relative to the needs of the military and the standards used to screen applicants to meet these needs. When the committee began its work in 1999, the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force had recently experienced recruiting shortfalls. By the early 2000s, all the Services were meeting their goals; however, in the first half of calendar year 2005, both the Army and the Marine Corps experienced recruiting difficulties and, in some months, shortfalls. When recruiting goals are not being met, scientific guidance is needed to inform policy decisions regarding the advisability of lowering standards and the impact of any change on training time and cost, job performance, attrition, and the health of the force. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment examines the current physical, medical, and mental health standards for military enlistment in light of (1) trends in the physical condition of the youth population; (2) medical advances for treating certain conditions, as well as knowledge of the typical course of chronic conditions as young people reach adulthood; (3) the role of basic training in physical conditioning; (4) the physical demands and working conditions of various jobs in today's military services; and (5) the measures that are used by the Services to characterize an individual's physical condition. The focus is on the enlistment of 18- to 24-year-olds and their first term of service.

Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society

Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2019-10-25
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0309489539

The U.S. military has been continuously engaged in foreign conflicts for over two decades. The strains that these deployments, the associated increases in operational tempo, and the general challenges of military life affect not only service members but also the people who depend on them and who support them as they support the nation â€" their families. Family members provide support to service members while they serve or when they have difficulties; family problems can interfere with the ability of service members to deploy or remain in theater; and family members are central influences on whether members continue to serve. In addition, rising family diversity and complexity will likely increase the difficulty of creating military policies, programs and practices that adequately support families in the performance of military duties. Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society examines the challenges and opportunities facing military families and what is known about effective strategies for supporting and protecting military children and families, as well as lessons to be learned from these experiences. This report offers recommendations regarding what is needed to strengthen the support system for military families.

Beyond El Barrio

Beyond El Barrio
Author: Gina M. Pérez
Publisher: NYU Press
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2010-10-24
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0814768008

Freighted with meaning, “el barrio” is both place and metaphor for Latino populations in the United States. Though it has symbolized both marginalization and robust and empowered communities, the construct of el barrio has often reproduced static understandings of Latino life; they fail to account for recent demographic shifts in urban centers such as New York, Chicago, Miami, and Los Angeles, and in areas outside of these historic communities. Beyond El Barrio features new scholarship that critically interrogates how Latinos are portrayed in media, public policy and popular culture, as well as the material conditions in which different Latina/o groups build meaningful communities both within and across national affiliations. Drawing from history, media studies, cultural studies, and anthropology, the contributors illustrate how despite the hypervisibility of Latinos and Latin American immigrants in recent political debates and popular culture, the daily lives of America’s new “majority minority” remain largely invisible and mischaracterized. Taken together, these essays provide analyses that not only defy stubborn stereotypes, but also present novel narratives of Latina/o communities that do not fit within recognizable categories. In this way, this book helps us to move “beyond el barrio”: beyond stereotype and stigmatizing tropes, as well as nostalgic and uncritical portraits of complex and heterogeneous range of Latina/o lives.

Recruiting Older Youths

Recruiting Older Youths
Author: Bernard Rostker
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2014
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

This report presents the results of a survey of 5,000 older Army recruits asking why they did not enlist immediately after high school and why they later chose to do so.

Inclusion in the American Military

Inclusion in the American Military
Author: Morten G. Ender
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 210
Release: 2023-10-30
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1666928747

The US military is one of the largest employers in the country and is a relative microcosm of American society, bringing in people from diverse backgrounds and history to defend the nation from all enemies. Military and civilian leaders address the same challenges as those found in the civilian world, including diversity, inclusion, equity, and belonging. The US military has both led and followed the nation in establishing policies of diversity and inclusion. In this second edition, the editors and contributors provide a revised, updated, and expanded overview of the ways in which diversity and inclusion are dispatched in the US military by providing information and knowledge about celebrated and contested social characteristics including race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and sexuality and three new groups comprising the military: the (dis)abled, civilians, and immigrants. Astute subject matter experts contribute contemporary, must have, go to chapters into a fresh, compelling, and insightful volume on the roles that each of these groups occupy in the US armed services as well as the laws, rules, and regulations regarding their participation. This new edition also provides eleven Lived Experiences that enliven and humanize each chapter and will assuredly inspire readers.

The All-volunteer Force

The All-volunteer Force
Author: Barbara A. Bicksler
Publisher: Potomac Books
Total Pages: 408
Release: 2004
Genre: History
ISBN:

Can America continue to maintain its military commitments without conscription?