Career Plans and Military Propensity of Hispanic Youth: Interviews with 1997 Youth Attitude Tracking Study Respondents

Abstract

AcknowledgmentsMany people contributed to completion of this study. In addition to the authors, other staff at Westat conducted interviews and assisted with the management of the sample and the data.Ms. Pamela Giambo worked many evenings and weekends to conduct interviews at times that were convenient to the youth. Tracey Hagerty managed sample selection, scheduling and other logistics associated with collection and management of the data.We wish particularly to thank Dr. W. S. Sellman, Director for Accession Policy, and Dr. Anita Lancaster, Assistant Director for Program Management at DMDC, for their continued support of this series of in-depth qualitative studies. Without their confidence in the long-term rewards to be gained from in-depth studies of youth transitions to adult life, these projects would never have been accomplished.Finally, special thanks to the young men who took time out of their busy days to talk to us. Their openness and candor provided us with valuable insights into their career decision-making processes and propensity for military service. EXECUTIVE SUMMARYThe Youth Attitude Tracking Study (YATS) was a complex annual telephone survey of 10,000 men and women aged 16-24. Since its beginning in 1975, YATS has produced nationally representative statistics regarding the opinions, attitudes, and beliefs of American youth on a variety of issues. Although the highly structured, formal YATS interview process allowed precise estimates of the percentage of youth indicating they will "definitely" or "probably" enter military service, it provided limited insight into the considerations or thought processes that caused youth to respond in a particular manner.It did not permit probing into the meaning of the responses.This study of 542 Hispanic youth from a pool of 1997 YATS respondents was designed to gain insights into career decision-making and military propensity not provided by the standard YATS interviews. Equal numbers of Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban and Central/South American youth were interviewed. Respondents with a broad range of current and past interests in military service were interviewed. A 45-minute, semi-structured interview protocol was developed. Major topical areas included the career decision-making process, consideration of military enlistment, and knowledge of the military way of life. The interviews allowed respondents to present a "natural history" of their own decision-making process in their own words, reflecting their individual experiences. The interview protocol included the liberal use of probes to clarify or uncover the deeper meaning of responses and used questions that offered respondents opportunities to provide details about their career decision-making process.The study explored the factors influencing young Hispanic men's life plans, including age, geographic location, urbanicity, socioeconomic status, and educational aspirations. Of these, social class, as represented by the young men's parents' socioeconomic status, and educational aspirations were the factors m...

College, Jobs, or the Military? Enlistment During a Time of War*

“…Changes in the recruiting environment have altered the tradeoffs between college, the labor market, and the military for all youth, and may have had a particular impact on those youth suffering from racial or economic disadvantage. Among the factors that may have changed the military-college-labor decision-making environment are the increased number of military deployments and the danger involved, changes in college costs, and changes in the likelihood of youth coming into contact with the military Totten, 1998, 2002;Orvis and Asch, 2001;Reed and Segal, 2000;National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, 2002;Achatz et al, 2000;Segal et al, 1999;Wilson et al, 2000;Segal and Segal, 2004;National Research Council, 2003).…”