Relationships Among an Individual Intelligence Test and Two Air Force Screening and Selection Tests

With the implementation of the all volunteer force concept, the Air Force must insure that the objectively measurable range of ability in its manpower pool is being utilized. This is especially true for minority groups who have been categorized and channeled into military career areas based upon their performance on two selection tests the Armed Forces Qualification Test AFQT and the Airman Qualifying Examination AQE. To investigate the relationship of the AFQT and AQE to the general mental ability of different racial groups of airmen, a sample of 100 black and 100 white Air Force basic trainees was administered an established test of general mental ability, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale WAIS. The verbal, performance, and full scale IQ scores of the white and black airmen were compared to their AFQT scores and their four AQE aptitude indexes. Significant differences between black and white airmen were found on the AFQT, the four AQE aptitude indexes, and the three WAIS IQs. Regression analyses demonstrated most differences to be interaction effects between race and Air Force test scores. Implications for further research into Air Force airmen selection tests were discussed.