The Retention of Recalled Navy Nurse Reservists following Operation Iraqi Freedom

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify factors that contribute to the retention of mobilized NNC reservists, because a negative experience with a recall to active duty could make a nurse reservist resign his/her commission. The specific aims of this study were to compare the factors that predict intent to stay of NNC reservists; to determine the scope of the problem of nurses-- intent to stay in the Reserves after return from deployment; test a causal model of voluntary turnover with a sample of NNC reservists who have returned from deployment; and offer an opportunity for mobilized reservists to describe any additional factors influencing one's intent to stay in the Navy Reserves. Design: This project utilized a non-experimental, retrospective, cross-sectional study design. Methods: The mailing procedure of the questionnaire via a survey firm consisted of the five-step compatible contacts process that Dillman (2000) advocates for maximizing response rates. Sample: Subjects who met the inclusion criteria --NNC reservists who were involuntarily recalled to active duty in support of OIF/OEF -- were recruited. Exclusion criteria were nurses not recalled, or those who volunteered to be recalled, for OIF/OEF. Of the 437 recalled NNC reservists, only 383 were eligible to participate in this study. 264 subjects were ultimately enrolled, yielding a response rate of 69% (264 / 383 = 0.6893). Instrumentation: Price and Mueller's Causal Model of Voluntary Turnover (1981, 1986) was used for this study since it addressed factors that may influence job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and intent to stay and has been adapted for use in the military setting. Analysis: Data were collected by questionnaires and analyzed via descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, multiple regression analysis, structural equation modeling (SEM), and content analysis. The original document contains color images.