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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment

Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards

Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards

Paul R. Sackett and Anne S. Mavor, Editors

Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences

Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
www.nap.edu

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
×

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
500 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20001

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

The study was supported by Award No. M67004-00-C-0030 between the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Marine Corps. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organizations or agencies that provided support for this project.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

National Research Council (U.S.). Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment.

Assessing fitness for military enlistment : physical, medical, and mental health standards / Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment ; Paul R. Sackett and Anne S. Mavor, editors.

p. cm.

ISBN 0-309-10079-8 (full book)—ISBN 0-309-65580-3 (pdfs) 1. United States—Armed Forces—Recruiting, enlistment, etc.—Standards 2. Soldiers—Health and hygiene—United States. 3. Youth—Health and hygiene—United States. 4. United States—Armed Forces—Medical examinations. 5. Manpower—United States. I. Sackett, Paul R. II. Mavor, Anne S. III. Title.

UB333.N382 2006

355.6′1—dc22

2005036191

Additional copies of this report are available from
The National Academies Press,
500 Fifth Street, N.W., Lockbox 285, Washington, DC 20055; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313 (in the Washington metropolitan area); Internet, http://www.nap.edu

Printed in the United States of America

Copyright 2006 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Suggested citation: National Research Council. (2006). Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards, Paul R. Sackett and Anne S. Mavor, editors. Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
×

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine


The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences.


The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.


The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.


The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.

www.national-academies.org

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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COMMITTEE ON THE YOUTH POPULATION AND MILITARY RECRUITMENT: PHYSICAL, MEDICAL, AND MENTAL HEALTH STANDARDS

PAUL R. SACKETT (Chair),

Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

DAVID J. ARMOR,

School of Public Policy, George Mason University

NOREEN M. CLARK,

School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

MARK J. EITELBERG,

Graduate School of Business and Public Policy, Naval Postgraduate School

BARBARA C. HANSEN,

Obesity, Diabetes and Aging Research Center at the College of Medicine of the University of South Florida, Tampa

PAUL F. HOGAN,

The Lewin Group Inc., Falls Church, VA

WILLIAM S. MARRAS,

Institute for Ergonomics, Ohio State University

STEPHEN W. MARSHALL,

Department of Epidemiology and Orthopedics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

RUSSELL R. PATE,

Department of Exercise Science, University of South Carolina, Columbia

GARRISON RAPMUND,

Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, George Mason University

THOMAS L. SCHWENK,

Department of Family Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

WILLIAM J. STRICKLAND,

HumRRO, Alexandria, VA

STEPHEN B. THOMAS,

Center for Minority Health and Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh

KAREN D. WAGNER,

Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas, Galveston

ANNE S. MAVOR, Study Director

WENDY E. KEENAN, Senior Project Assistant

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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BOARD ON BEHAVIORAL, COGNITIVE, AND SENSORY SCIENCES

ANNE C. PETERSEN (Chair),

W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Battle Creek, MI

STEPHEN J. CECI,

Department of Human Development, Cornell University

EUGENE K. EMORY,

Department of Psychology, Emory University

ANTHONY W. JACKSON,

Asia Society, Los Angeles

ELISSA L. NEWPORT,

Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Rochester

MICHAEL L. RUTTER,

Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Research Centre, London

JAMES W. STIGLER,

Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles

CHRISTINE R. HARTEL, Board Director

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
×

Acknowledgments

The committee is grateful for the many individuals who contributed information to this report and who were helpful throughout the study process (see Appendix C for a complete list of contributors). We would particularly like to thank Jeffrey Hoyle, Ohio State University, and Jennifer Grubb, University of South Carolina, for their contributions to the review and analyses of the military literature on musculoskeletal injury and fitness. The committee extends its gratitude to Bruce Jones, U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Injury Prevention, for his extensive briefings and assistance in data retrieval and analysis related to military fitness and injury and to Deborah Gebhardt, Human Performance Systems, Inc., for the information she provided on physical, medical, and mental health screening for civilian employment. We would also like to thank Margot Krauss and David Niebuhr for their informative presentations of findings from studies conducted at the Accessions Medical Standards Analysis and Research Activity.

The committee is most grateful to Curt Gilroy, director of accession policy, and Jane Arabian, assistant director for accession policy, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness), for their interest and encouragement and in providing support for the study.

Staff of the National Research Council has contributed to this report in many ways. We would especially like to thank Wendy Keenan, the committee’s senior project assistant, for her indispensable work in organizing meetings, arranging travel, and compiling agenda material. We are also indebted to Christine McShane, who edited and significantly improved the report.

Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report: Wm. Cameron Chumlea, Departments of Community Health and Pediatrics, Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, Dayton, OH; G. Bruce Copley, Consultant, Flemington, NJ; Matthew J. Friedman, National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorders, White River Junction, VT; Robert R. McMeekin, Consultant, Bethesda, MD; Ann Quigley, Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security; Manmohan Ranadive, U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Department of the Army, Ft. Detrick, MD; Hendrick W. Ruck, Human Effectiveness Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory; Brian J. Sharkey, Technology and Development Center, USDA Forest Service, Missoula, MT; and Martin F. Wiskoff, Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, Monterey, CA.

Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Johanna Dwyer, Office of Dietary Supplements, National Institutes of Health. Appointed by the National Research Council, she was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.

Paul R. Sackett, Chair

Anne S. Mavor, Study Director

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2006. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment: Physical, Medical, and Mental Health Standards. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11511.
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The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) faces short-term and long-term challenges in selecting and recruiting an enlisted force to meet personnel requirements associated with diverse and changing missions. The DoD has established standards for aptitudes/abilities, medical conditions, and physical fitness to be used in selecting recruits who are most likely to succeed in their jobs and complete the first term of service (generally 36 months). In 1999, the Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment was established by the National Research Council (NRC) in response to a request from the DoD. One focus of the committee's work was to examine trends in the youth population relative to the needs of the military and the standards used to screen applicants to meet these needs.

When the committee began its work in 1999, the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force had recently experienced recruiting shortfalls. By the early 2000s, all the Services were meeting their goals; however, in the first half of calendar year 2005, both the Army and the Marine Corps experienced recruiting difficulties and, in some months, shortfalls. When recruiting goals are not being met, scientific guidance is needed to inform policy decisions regarding the advisability of lowering standards and the impact of any change on training time and cost, job performance, attrition, and the health of the force.

Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment examines the current physical, medical, and mental health standards for military enlistment in light of (1) trends in the physical condition of the youth population; (2) medical advances for treating certain conditions, as well as knowledge of the typical course of chronic conditions as young people reach adulthood; (3) the role of basic training in physical conditioning; (4) the physical demands and working conditions of various jobs in today's military services; and (5) the measures that are used by the Services to characterize an individual's physical condition. The focus is on the enlistment of 18- to 24-year-olds and their first term of service.

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