Date of Award

12-1-1978

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Communication

Abstract

The U.S. Air Force is a diversified organization of nearly half a million people based worldwide. Because of its nature and complex mission, the organization has unique internal communication needs. One program established to satisfy those needs is Commander’s Call, and a mandatory component of each Commander's Call is the latest edition of the Air Force Now film. Because Commander's Call is held monthly at the unit 1evai and attendance Is mandatory for all personnel, and because a fifteen to thirty minute color sound-on film is produced monthly .for it, the program represents a substantial investment of resources and a strong commitment to internal communication.

This study aska whether Commander's Call and the Air Force Now --------------------------- are in fact meeting the needs of Air Force internal communication. A . .. ■ ■hi..., ; ■ - . field research method employing che survey technique was used to collect data from an independent sample drawn from the military population at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, a basA whose mission is to maintain long range missiles and bomber aircraft or. strategic alert. The study asks whether position in the military rank structure, degree of job satisfaction, or command position affect attitudes toward Commander’s Call. It also asks whether attitudes toward Commander*s Call influence attitudes toward Air Force Now, and whether .Air Force Now enhances or detracts from Commander's Call. Finally, it asks whether attitudes toward Air Force Now and Commander's Call warrant their continued use.

The findings indicate that job satisfaction and command position variables significantly affect attitudes toward Commander's Call. They also indicate that the film and the program are probably evaluated independently, aid the film is regarded with significantly more favor than Commander’s Call, finally they indicate that valuation of both programs are generally favorable, and no evidence exists that they should be discontinued.

There Is strong evidence, however, to support the overall conclusion that certain changes in the programs would enhance their communication effectiveness, Those changes include more solicitation by commanders of the topics considered salient by their subordinates, more commander flexibility as to where, when and how to conduct the program, and an Air ?orce wide program to collect, analyze and respond to feed-back by participants.

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