Quit behavior of first-term enlisted Marine Corps personnel.

Abstract

This thesis examines the effects of personal, human capital, and job-specific characteristics on the quit decision of first-term enlisted Marine Corps personnel. Additionally, factors for census region the Marine enlisted from, the granting of a waiver to enlist, and number of promotions were modeled. The data provided are from the Defense Manpower Data Center Cohort Files and include those who enlisted from September 1980 through September 1981 on a four year contract. A model of utility maximization was used to determine the quit decision. Probit analyses were conducted for the general population and selected groups based on marital status, race, education, and AFQT group. Empirical results of the model indicated, for personal factors, being married and from a minority group significantly reduced guits. The results on census region were generally inconclusive but those from the Pacific and New England area had a higher propensity to quit. The human capital factors supported evidence from previous literature that high school graduates are the "best bet" and less likely to guit. Finally, the job-specific factors for MOS indicate that the two areas with the greatest likelihood of quits were infantrymen and electronic equipment repairman; it was in the overcrowded field of administrative support that the quit rate was larqe, negative, and significant.