Determinants of enlisted air traffic controller success

Background: This paper provides a brief historical overview of air traffic controller (ATC) selection, reviews current U.S. Air Force (USAF) selection procedures for enlisted ATC trainees, and summarizes the results of three recent studies. Method: Study 1 examined the validity of the operational se lection test (i.e., Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery or ASVAB) ag ainst apprentice-level training performance. Study 2 evaluated the impact o f alternative selection procedures on training attrition and eligibility fo r training. Study 3 reviewed the results of a survey of enlisted ATCs desig ned to identify the personnel characteristics and organizational factors th at influence training and job performance. Discussion: The current selectio n composite demonstrated acceptable validity for predicting apprentice-leve l training performance. Alternative cut-score analyses revealed that raisin g the minimum qualifying score in order to reduce attrition by 5% would lea d to an unacceptable 20% reduction in the number of eligible ATC candidates . Using a different ASVAB composite for selection would have less overall i mpact on the qualification rate, but would disproportionally disqualify wom en. Results of a survey of enlisted ATCs indicated they were generally sati sfied and motivated. In addition. they identified several abilities require d for on-the-job performance that are not measured by current USAF selectio n methods. These included memorization and retention of new information, sp atial orientation/visualization, ability to work well in stressful environm ents, ability to shift between two or more sources of information, and abil ity to combine and organize information. Implications for ATC selection and training as well as future research directions are discussed.