Performance and Skill Requirements for Fire Support Teams

This research developed a Task Data Base for Fire Support Teams (FIST) and identified 48 tasks, grouped them into six functional areas, classified them as either procedural or semi-structured, and ranked them according to criteria of criticality and performance. The FIST Task Data Inventory resulted from the task analyses and integration of task descriptions and information obtained from questionnaires, interviews, and observations administered at three CONUS and four USAREUR divisions. Statistical analyses of the data indicated that (1) criticality and performance were negatively correlated, (2) procedural tasks were the least critical and best performed, (3) semi-structured tasks were the most critical and poorest performed, (4) task difficulty was the principal factor in ratings of criticality, and (5) traditional tasks were performed better than non-traditional tasks. The results of these analyses, and the utilization of the FIST Task Data Inventory, are discussed in terms of personnel and training assessments, simulation and training device recommendations, task analyses methodologies, and selection criteria. This article is from Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Military Testing Association (23rd) held at Arlington, Virginia on 25-30 October 1981. Volume 1, ADA130702, p853-860.