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- Title
Channel modeling: From West Point cadet to general.
- Authors
Mazur, Allan; Mueller, Ulrich
- Abstract
The article examines military rank attainment of a West Point class, evaluating the importance of men's "visibility" assets in attaining their highest promotion i.e., lieutenant colonel, colonel or ascending grades of general. The U.S. Army and Air Force are two organizations that are characterized as meritocracies, where career advancement is supposed to be determined mostly by one's ability to achieve institutional goals. Critics have long claimed that promotion in meritocracy is inevitably affected by factors separate from competence. Promotion in the military goes to those who perform best, with their preferred "visibility theory" which stresses the importance of being seen and known and of having contacts with peers and mentors who can influence one's upward mobility. By representing the military stratification system as a channel model, including forward paths and side shunts, the authors describe the complex effects of these factors, emphasizing the importance for high promotion of appointments to staff and war colleges. Channel modeling improves the quantitative account of rank attainment and advances the substantive understanding of the promotion process. INSET: Data..
- Subjects
UNITED States; PROMOTIONS in the United States Army; UNITED States. Air Force; MILITARISM; EMPLOYEE promotions; CAREER development; ARMED Forces; UNITED States. Army
- Publication
Public Administration Review, 1996, Vol 56, Issue 2, p191
- ISSN
0033-3352
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.2307/977207