Value changes in four cohorts at the US Military Academy

This article deals with values and value changes at three levels: (1) What values do cadets at the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) hold at entrance, and do they hold the same values as other college students? (2) How do USMA cad et values change during their four years at West Point? (3) How consistent is the pattern of change from cohort to cohort? Using the Scott Values Inve ntory (SVI) and the Army Year of Values Survey (AWS), cadets entering the U nited States Military Academy were found to have higher scores than student s entering a nonmilitary four-year public university. Using the SVI, four c ohorts of cadets at the Academy provided repeated measures of their values from entrance to graduation. The pattern of changes in values for all four classes was similar; the similarities of how each class changed were remark able in view of changes in the curriculum and student body during the seven teen years of this study. Using the AYVS, two cohorts of cadets showed that values recognized as appropriate for Army leaders were high at entrance an d remained so over their four years in higher education.