The DoD mandates that all services evaluate the basic physical fitness of their personnel at least yearly. Each service administers its own test; while the Air Force test measures only cardiorespiratory endurance, the others attempt to measure strength and flexibility as well. Studies show that a high percentage of female personnel, particularly those in the youngest age groups, fail the Army physical fitness test. Comparable data were not available for the other services. Although the DoD authorizes provision of duty time for physical activity, only the Army and Marine Corps explicitly provide this time. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that compliance is dependent on the individual command. Few data are available on the fitness habits of active-duty personnel; self-report data show that approximately 60 percent of active-duty women exercise regularly.

The 277 MOSs are classified into five categories based on requirements for lifting strength. At the present time, a test of physical performance ability/strength is conducted on a regular basis only by the Air Force, which uses the incremental dynamic lift test. In response to concerns that a significant percentage of personnel (and a disproportionate number of women) were unable to accomplish their assigned tasks, the GAO performed an analysis and issued a report in 1996 recommending the institution of task-specific performance tests throughout the military as well as reconsideration of the validity and reliability of the incremental dynamic lift test. Also recommended were job redesign and additional strength training. The primary objection to task-specific physical performance tests has been the potentially large number of tests that would be required and the frequency with which personnel change MOSs.

Evaluation of prospective or current employees for jobs that require high levels of fitness (endurance, strength, and aerobic capacity) is more completely developed in the civilian sector. In the United States, task analysis and classification of civilian jobs by physical ability dates back to efforts by the Army Air Corps during World War II (Hogan, 1991) to place qualified soldiers into military specialties. Recent increases in the use of physical abilities' testing is believed to result from the influx of women into the workplace, from passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and from evidence that lack of physical fitness for a physically demanding job is associated with increased rates of on-the-job injuries (Jackson, 1994).

The development of fitness/performance standards and tests is a two-step process. The first step requires analysis of the tasks of a particular job and the physical requirements required to perform those tasks, with subsequent formulation of a set of performance test items that mimic the individual tasks. The second step requires validating the test by multiple criteria (Hogan, 1991). The legitimacy of pre-employment hiring tests for physically demanding jobs has been upheld in the court system. Validating such tests is imperative, however, because of the potential

Front Matter (R1-R16)

Executive Summary (1-24)

1 Introduction (25-32)

2 Body Composition (33-60)

3 Physical Fitness Policies and Programs (61-86)

4 Weight Management (87-108)

5 Nutritional Concerns of Military Women (109-126)

6 Pregnancy and Lactation and Postpartum Return-To-Duty Fitness (127-156)

7 Conclusions and Recommendations (157-170)

Appendixes (171-172)

A Workshop Summary, Agenda, Participants, and Abstracts (173-252)

B Practices and Policies Tables (253-262)

C Military Occupational Specialty Classification Tables (263-280)

D Search Strategy for Literature Review (281-284)

E Civilian Inquiry Letter and Table of Responses (285-290)

F Abbreviations (291-294)

G Bibliography (295-334)

H Biographical Sketches (335-338)

Index (339-352)