Components

1
U.S. Army Recruiter Selection Research An
Update
Presented by Dr. Walter Borman Personnel
Decisions Research Institutes With contributions
by Dr. Len White, LTC Stephen Bowles, Ms.
Kristen Horgen, Dr. U. Christean Kubisiak, and
Dr. Lisa Penney Presented at International
Military Testing Association Conference,
Pensacola, FL November 2003
2
Recruiter Screening Initiative

• Objective Validate new screening tool for
  recruiters and establish it as part of the
  standard screening process for recruiters
• Noncommissioned Officer Leadership Skills
  Inventory (NLSI) is a new instrument from this
  project
• Long-term goals Use new measures as part of
  screening process for recruiters
• Expanded applications to other NCO specialties
  (e.g., Drill Sergeant) and Recruiting Station
  commanders
• ARI, Command Psychologist USAREC, and Personnel
  Decisions Research Institutes (contractor) work
  in coordination

3
Overview of NLSI Validation Process
Implementation
Predictive Validation (began Jan 02) Test
soldiers entering recruiter training at Fort
Jackson. Track to evaluate predictive validity
of most promising measures from the CV
Concurrent Validation (April-July 01 nationwide
sample) Administer instruments for measuring fit
with sales to recruiters. Collect data on
sales success - Initial test of hypotheses /
refine instrument
Select Best-bet Instruments for Predicting
Sales Review salesperson selection literature /
choose measures
4
Noncommissioned Officer Leadership Skills
Inventory (NLSI)

• Most promising measures from Concurrent
  Validation
• 3 Parts 60-90 minutes ARI developed
• NLSI Parts I/II Personal and interpersonal
  competencies related to sales success
• Concurrent validities ranged from .13 to .35 for
  eight scales
• NLSI Part III Situational judgment items for
  measuring problem-solving and social judgment
  skill
• NLSI score initially based on combination of best
  predictors of sales from CV
• Low correlation with examinee race and gender

5
Predictive Validation NLSI Testing

• Began Jan 02 with NLSI testing of new recruiter
  trainees reporting for Army Recruiter Course
  (ARC) at Fort Jackson
• About 2,700 tested since Jan 02
• Track recruiters to evaluate predictive
  relationships between NLSI and performance in
  training and later sales success
• Computerized testing at Army Digital Training
  Facilitates starting in January 2003
• 630 tested

6
Predictive Validation NLSI Predicts ARC
Attrition (N1,466 Recruiters)
Note Overall sample attrition10.9
7
Predictive Validation NLSI Predicts ARC
Attrition
8
Calculation of Sales Production Army Recruiting
Command (USAREC) and NLSI Project Differences

• USAREC computes sales volume across ALL
  recruiters for a specific month (e.g., Apr 03)
• Total of recruit contracts written by all
  recruiters in Apr 03
• Total of recruiters active
  in Apr 03
• Monthly sales figures may differ depending on the
  population of interest (e.g., RA v. USAR
  recruiters)
• For NLSI validation, emphasis is the sales volume
  for INDIVIDUAL recruiters across many months
  (e.g., FY02)
• Total of recruit contracts written by a
  recruiter in FY02
• Total of months that recruiter was
  active in FY02

9
NLSI Scores Predict Individual Recruiter
Production (n1466 Recruiters)
10

Summary of NLSI Results with Recruiters

• NLSI scores show large variation among recruiters
  and predict subsequent performance
• Recruiters scoring in lowest 5 have lower
  production averages (.75 vs. 1.05 for others) and
  higher attrition from Army Recruiter Course (36
  vs 9 for others with higher NLSI scores)
• These initial results support the use of a
  limited operational test of NLSI
• Low initial screen minimizes risks and is a step
  towards improving the quality of the sales force
• Research to refine the NLSI is ongoing in FY04

11
Expanded Applications to RecruitingStation
Commanders

• Objective
• Validate new predictors of station commander
  performance
• Add to operational screening measures
• Initial validation FY04
• Sample of current station commanders who were
  tested as recruiters in 2001 on NLSI scales and
  other measures
• Collect performance data and establish linkages
  between psychological test scores and performance
• Possible next steps if initial validation proves
  successful
• Make test available for online administration
• Use in the station commander selection and/or
  assessment process