Trainee Perceptions of Drill Sergeant Qualities During Basic Combat Training

Abstract

Basic combat training plays an important role in military service with approximately 72,000 soldiers participating in the United States annually. Although Drill Sergeant qualities have been widely portrayed in popular media, there is very little empirical research that documents the characteristics of Drill Sergeants and the impact these characteristics may have on trainees. In this study we evaluated a measure of perceived Drill Sergeant qualities and the degree to which these qualities related to mental health symptoms and job-related outcomes of trainees. Three types of perceived Drill Sergeant qualities were found from factor analyses: motivation, respect, and toughness. Using latent growth curve analyses, higher initial scores on motivation and respect, but not toughness, were associated with greater decreases in mental health symptoms over time. Further, changes in perceived Drill Sergeant qualities related to changes in depressive symptoms, unit cohesion, and citizen behaviors assessed over the course of basic combat training.

• military
• basic training
• depression
• anxiety symptoms
• leadership

Notes

1 Although replication in another sample is needed to confirm the structural validity findings, the three-factor solution was also tested using confirmatory factor analysis at each of the three time points (Weeks 3, 6, and 9). Factors were free to correlate, but no items were permitted to covary or load across factors in the initial test to begin with the most parsimonious model. Analyses were conducted with Mplus 6.1 statistical software using full information maximum likelihood estimation with robust statistics to adjust for potential bias due to multivariate non-normality ( Asparouhov & Muthén, 2005). The initial three-factor model tested at Week 3 was a suboptimal fit to the data, χ² (132) = 988.74, CFI = .86, TLI = .83, RMSEA = .08, SRMR = .10. Modification indices suggested allowing five sets of items within a factor to covary improved model fit, χ² (127) = 549.68, CFI = .93, TLI = .92, RMSEA = .06, SRMR = .06. Items that were free to covary are marked with a subscript in Table 1. This final model (three factors with five sets of residuals free to covary within factors) was tested for cross-validation in Week 6 and Week 9 samples. Results indicated the model fit well in both of these two samples, supporting cross-validation of the three-factor solution: Week 6: χ² (127) = 602.06, CFI = .93, TLI = .91, RMSEA = .07, SRMR = .06; Week 9: χ² (127) = 770.43, CFI = .92, TLI = .90, RMSEA = .08, SRMR = .07.