The relationship between core values/personal accountability and discipline rates among Air Force enlisted personnel

This qualitative exploratory case study examined the relationship between a leadership emphasis on U.S. Air Force core values/personal accountability (CV/PA), beginning in 1995, and disciplinary rates among all U.S Air Force enlisted personnel. The population included two groups—those on active duty during the Pre-CV/PA era (i.e., 1990–1994) and those on active duty during the Post-CV/PA era (i.e., 1995–1999). A comparison of disciplinary rates for Article 15s and courts-martial was conducted on the two groups, who were categorized into six subpopulations according to rank and gender. Disciplinary data were obtained via the Automated Military Justice Administrative Management System (AMJAMS), and tabulated as proportions due to varying sample sizes. Subpopulations means were calculated using simple descriptive statistics.; The findings suggest a relationship between a leadership emphasis on CV/PA and the Article 15 rates for all six subpopulations. The means for male and female airmen rose from Pre-CV/PA to Post-CV/PA while the means for NCOs and SNCOs, male and female, all dropped from Pre-CV/PA to Post-CV/PA. The findings also suggest a relationship between CV/PA and the courts-martial rates for all six subpopulations. The means for male and female airmen and female NCOs and SNCOs rose from PreCV/PA to Post-CV/PA while the means for male NCOs and SNCOs decreased from Pre-CV/PA to Post-CV/PA. Offenses leading to Article 15 and/or courts-martial actions differ by rank and gender and do not appear to be related to CV/PA.; Recommendations included more data collection/analysis to isolate a cause-and-effect relationship for the findings in the Post-CV/PA group, examine the impact of First Term Airmen Center training, and study recruit quality in the Pre-CV/PA group.