Survey of Black Officers in the Marine Corps: Attitudes and Opinions on Recruiting, Retention, and Diversity.

This thesis addresses the reasons why Black officers joined the Marine Corps, their attitudes toward continued service, and their general feelings about population diversity in the military. Focused interviews were conducted with 15 Black Marine officers. All interviews were taped and then transcribed. Analysis of the transcripts revealed 15 general themes. These themes covered many topics, including the people who most influenced an officer's decision to join the Marine Corps, the role of recruiters, perceptions of inequitable treatment, and concerns about achieving minority representation in the officer ranks. A major finding drawn from the themes is that the Marine Corps must continue to strive for a deeper understanding of the problems and issues confronting minority officers. In the end, the key to success in minority officer recruitment lies in the thoughts and perspectives of current, as well as, future minority officers. The thesis concludes with a collection of potential survey items drawn from the themes and recommended courses of action that may help the sea Services pursue their goal of population diversity.