DOT/FAA/AM-89-7 

Office of Aviation Medicine 

Washington, D.C. 20591 

Relationships of Anxiety 

Scores to Academy and 

Field Training Performance 

of Air Traffic Control 

Specialists 

William E. Collins, Ph.D. 

David J. Schroeder, Ph.D. 

Lendell G. Nye 

Civil Aeromedical Institute 

Federal Aviation Administration 

Oklahoma City, OK 73125 

May 1989 

This document is available to the public 

through the National Technical Information 

Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161. 

U.S. Deportment 

of Transportation 

Federal Aviation 

Administration 
Technical Report Documentation Page 

1. Repo't No . 2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipoent ' s Catalog No. 

DOT/FAA/AM-89/ 7 

4. T i tle and Subtitle 5 . Repo't Do te 

MAY 1989 6. Perform ing Organization Code 

~--~~ ~ Performing Organization Report No. 

7. Autho' 1 s) ----------------------------------~ 

RELATIONSHIPS OF ANXIETY SCORES TO ACADEMY AND 

FIELD TRAINING PERFORMANCE OF AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL 

SPECIALISTS 

William E. Collins, David J. Schroeder, Lendell G. Nye 

9 . Performing Organization Nom e and Address 

FAA Civil Aeromedical Institute 

P. 0. Box 25082 

Oklahoma City, OK 73125 

10. Wo,k Unot No . (TRAIS ) 

11 . Contract or Grant No . 

~--------------~~--------------~------~ 12. Sponso,ing Agency Nome and Add,e ss 

1 3. T ype of Repo ' t and Pe,iod Cove ,e d 

Office of Aviation Medicine 

Federal Aviation Administration 

800 Independence Avenue, S.W. 

Washington, D.C. 20591 

15 . Su pplemento'y Note s 

14 . Sponso,ing Agency Code 

AAM-500 

This study was conducted under t ask AM-C-88/89-HRR-102. 

16. Abst,uct 

State-trait anxiety scores were used prior to the 1981 strike of air traffic control 1 

specialists (ATCSs) to estimate perceived levels of job stress in field studies of i 

this occupational group. The present study assessed the relationship between 

anxi-ety, as measured by the State-Trait Personality Inventory (STPI), and post-strike 

ATCS trainee success at the FAA Academy and during field training. The STPI was 

administered to students who entered the FAA Academy between June 1984 and September 

1985. Academy test scores were obtained for 1,790 students in the enroute option. 

Criterion data included the field training status of the Academy graduates as of July 

1988. Statistical analyses determined the relationships between ATCS student scores 

on the STPI measures and (a) normative data and (b) Academy and field performance. 

ATCS students reported significantly lower state (current level) and trait 

(proneness) levels of anxiety than did either college students or military recruits. 

Individuals who were unsuccessful at the Academy, as well as those who were 

unsuccessful in the field, had higher overall anxiety scores. Trainees who had 

relatively high scores (for ATCS) on a combined index of the trait and state measures 

of anxiety exhibited significantly higher (a) percentages of Academy failures/withdrawals, (b) percentages of option switches in the field, and (c) 

overall field attrition than did trainees with low scores. Results support the 

operation of some personality-related self-selection among ATCS applicants regarding anxiety, and the importance of this characteristic for ATCS job success. 

17. Key Wo,ds 

Air Traffic Controller 

Anxiety 

Selection 

Training 

19. Secu,ity Cl os si f. (of th is 'epo,t) 

UNCLASSIFIED 

Form DOT F 1700.7 <B -72l 

18. Distribution Statement 

Document is available to the public 

through the National Technical 

Information Service, Springfield, VA 

22161 . 

20 . Secu, ity Classil. (of thi s page ) 21 . No . of Page s 22. P,ic e 

UNCLASSIFIED 9 

Reproduction of completed poge authorized 
RELATIONSHIPS OF ANXIETY SCORES TO ACADEMY AND FIELD TRAINING 

PERFORMANCE OF AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SPECIALISTS 

W. E. Collins, D. J. Schroeder, and L. G. Nye 

INTRODUCTION 

For more than a decade prior to the 1981 strike of air traffic control 

specialists (ATCSs), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) was used to 

provide psychological assessments in research studies related to the job 

stresses of controlling air traffic (6). Those studies showed that 

controller groups scored significantly below college student norms on both 

the A-state (current anxiety level) and A-traif (anxiety proneness) 

measures of the STAI, and that A-state scores (i) increased across an 8-hr 

work shift and (ii) were higher on shifts rated "difficult" than they were 

on "easy" shifts. Moreover, later studies indicated that ATCSs had lower 

state and trait anxiety scores than did other working adults, and that 

A-state scores increased from the beginning to the end of work shifts for 

employees in a variety of non-air-traffic jobs (e.g., engineers), just as 

they did for ATCSs. 

Thus, ATCSs were shown to be well within normal limits on the indicators of 

psychological states used in these studies and appeared to experience less 

anxiety than is the average in other work settings. ----

During the same decade, STAI results from student Naval aviators in flight training were reported in a set of studies (1, 3) that indicated that 

aviator officer candidates scored lower in trait anxiety but higher in 

state anxiety than did the male college students who comprised the 

normative sample for the test. Moreover, voluntary dropouts from the 

flight training program did not differ in A-trait scores from those who 

continued in the program, but had higher A-state scores upon admission to 

the program (2). 

The present study used the State-Trait Personality Inventory (STPI), which 

includes an updated version of the STAI, to assess the relationship between 

anxiety measures and the success of post-strike ATCS trainees at the FAA 

Academy and during field training. 

METHOD 

State-Trait Personality Inventory (STPI). The STPI comprises a total of 60 

items divided into three "trait" and three "state" subscales for anxiety, curiosity, and anger. "Trait" scores require a response on a 4-point scale 

in terms of how the individual generally feels which includes (1) almost 

never, (2) sometimes, (3) often, and (4) almost always. Similarly, "state" 

items are rated on a 4-point scale comprising (1) not at all, (2) somewhat, 

(3) moderately so, and (4) very much so, to indicate how the individual 

feels at the present time. Scores for each of the six subscales can range 

from a minimum of 10 to a maximum of 40 based on the sum of the numbers 

(ratings) associated with the selected response alternatives (i.e., "not at 

all"=1); weights are reversed for 11 items, which are worded so that high 

1 
ratings indicate absence of the emotion. Only the anxiety subscales will 

be addressed in the paper. 

The original version of this test (STAI) contained 20 items for each of the 

anxiety subscales, yielding a potential range of subscale scores from 20 to 

80. Since some items were deleted from the original STAI test, and several 

new items were added to the current STPI anxiety subscales, scores from the 

older (STAI) version are not directly comparable to the current (STPI) 

form. However, the correlations of both the "state" and "trait" subscale 

scores of the STPI with the corresponding STAI subscales were .93 or 

greater for the normative groups of college students and military recruits 

(7) • 

Subjects. Subjects were 1790 students who entered the en route air traffic 

control option at the FAA Academy between June 1984 and September 1985. 

The sample comprised 1555 men and 235 women with a mean age of 25.9 years; 

43.9% of the sample had graduated from college. Academy graduates were 

followed into field training (a process encompassing about three years) 

during which similar data were obtained through July 1988. 

Procedure. The STPI was administered to ATCS students during the first day 

or two after their entry into the FAA Academy training program. The STPI 

was always the first of several tests and demographic questionnaires 

administered during the same block of time. Data regarding progress in the 

training program (all test scores; plus the designation of withdrawal, 

failure, or successful completion) were maintained in the Human Resources 

Research Division of the Civil Aeromedical Institute (CAM!). Statistical 

analyses included chi-square, t-tests, and multiple regression analyses to 

determine various relationships between ATCS student scores on the STPI 

measures and (i) normative STPI data and (ii) Academy and field training 

performance. 

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 

Mean scores and standard deviations for the ATCS students on the A-state 

and A-trait subscales are presented in Table I along with normative data 

for the STPI (7) from college students and Navy recruits. Results of 

t-tests indicated that (i) both male and female ATCS students reported 

TABLE I. MEANS AND STANDARD DEVIATIONS FOR STATE ANXIETY (A-STATE) 

AND TRAIT ANXIEY (A-TRAIT) SCALES FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS, NAVY RECRUITS, 

AND A TCS STUDENTS AS MEASURED BY THE STATE-TRAIT PERSONALITY INDEX 

(STPI). 

MEASURE 

A-State 

Mean 

SD 

A- Trait 

Mean 

SD 

NORMATIVE SAMPLE 

COLLEGE 

MEN 

17.95 

5.52 

17.88 

4.47 

WOMEN 

19.06 

6.25 

19.38 

5.65 

MEN 

2 

24.05 

7.14 

19.17 

5.14 

NAVY 

WOMEN 

23.88 

7.94 

19.24 

5.56 

A TCS TRAINEES 

MEN 

16.12 

4.80 

14.75 

3.78 

WOMEN 

15.59 

4.33 

14.95 

3.64 
significantly (p<.001 in 111 cases) lower state and trait anxiety than did 

either of the corresponding groups of college students or military 

recruits; and (ii) there were no within-group sex differences for ATCS 

students . on either subscale. Sex differences in A-trait were evident in 

Spielberger's (7) normative sample of college students (but not with his 

Navy recruits) and were obtained in a study of community volunteers (8). 

Other studies (4, 5) have shown significant relationships of both trainee 

age and their scores on the Multiplex Controller Aptitude Test (MCAT; a 

qualifying test for applicants to the ATCS program) with performance at the 

Academy and in field training. Thus the relationships of STPI anxiety 

scores with both age and MCAT scores are pertinent. Spearman correlation 

coefficients were computed for both state and trait anxiety with age and 

MCAT score and also with sex and level of education. Correlations were 

close to .00 with one exception, viz. between trait anxiety and education; 

that latter r = .07 was statistically significant, but obviously quite low. 

Thus, the relationship of anxiety scores to Academy and field training is 

essentially independent of these other potentially contributing factors to 

training success (see Table II). 

TABLE II. INTERCORRELATIONS OF ANXIETY SCORES (A-TRAIT AND A-STATE), 

MULTIPLEX CONTROLLER APPITUDE TEST SCORES (MCAT), AGE, SEX, AND AMOUNT 

OF EDUCATION. 

MEASURE A-TRAIT A-STATE MCAT AGE SEX ED 

A-TRAIT 1.00 .54** -.02 .00 .02 .07** 

A-STATE 1.00 -.04 .00 -.03 .01 

MCAT 1.00 - .21** -.05 .02 

AGE 1.00 .01 .09** 

SEX 1.00 .06* 

ED 1.00 

* - Significant LE .01 

** - Significant LE .001 

The ATCS data for men and women were combined and three levels of anxiety 

were defined for both A-state and A-trait as follows: 

Level 

Low 

Mid 

High 

A-State 

10 

11-22 

23+ 

A-Trait 

10 

11-19 

20+ 

tota 1 score 

total score 

total score 

The low anxiety level scores of 10 represent the minimum valid score for 

any STPI subscale. The minimum scores used to define the High anxiety 

levels equate to one (rounded) point above the mean anxiety subscale scores 

of the combined normative groups of college students and military recruits. 

3 
TABLE Ill. A-STATE AND A-TRAIT ANXIETY LEVELS AND ACADEMY PERFORMANCE. 

A-STATE PASS FAIL WITHDRAW/ 

LEVELS ACADEMY ACADEMY INCOMPLETE TOTAL 

LOW 132 65 22 219 

(SCORE 10) 60.3% '19.7% 10.0% 100.0% 

MID n6 456 155 1387 

(SCORE 11-22) 55.9% 32.9% 11.2% 100.0% 

HIGH 87 69 28 184 

(SCORE 23+) 47.3% 37.5% 15.2% 100.0% 

A-TRAIT PASS FAIL WITHDRAW/ 

LEVELS ACADEMY ACADEMY INCOMPLETE TOTAL 

LOW 105 47 15 167 

(SCORE 10) 62.9% 28.1% 9.0% 100.0% 

MID 797 466 161 1424 

(SCORE 11-19) 56.0% 32.7% 11.3% 100.0% 

HIGH 93 n '}9 199 

(SCORE 20+) 46.7% 38.7% 14.6% 100.0% 

The three levels of anxiety were used to assess relationships with 

performance at the FAA Academy; students who passed, failed, or were 

recorded as withdrawals or incompletes were tabulated by anxiety level (see 

Table III). For both A-state and A-trait scores, (i) the proportions of 

students who passed at the Academy decreased as a function of increasing levels of anxiety, and (ii) the proportions of students who either failed 

or were in the withdraw/incomplete category increased as a function of 

increasing levels of anxiety. Statistical analyses by chi-square 

techniques indicated significant differences in FAA Academy performance 

between the groups high in A-trait and high in A-state scores and their 

counterparts in the low anxiety groups (p<.Ol in both cases). For both 

A-state and A-trait anxiety, Academy pass rates were less than 50% for 

trainees in the high anxiety groups and their withdrawal rates were over 

50% higher than those for the low anxiety groups. 

One way to examine the relationship of field train i ng performance to 

A-state and A-trait scores is to assess field attrition and option switches 

(the latter refers to those who stay in the air traffic occupation but move 

to a different option, e.g., from en route to the terminal or flight 

service station options). 

Table IV presents these data and shows that, for those trainees who passed the Academy, the proportions who either attrited or switched options (i) 

increased with A-trait score levels, (ii) were inconsistent for A-state 

score levels. 

4 
TABLE IV. A-STATE AND A-TRAIT ANXIETY LEVELS AND FIELD TRAINING 

PERFORMANCE. 

A-STATE PASS FIELD OPTION FPL OR 

LEVELS ACADEMY ATTRITION SWITCH DE VEL TOTAL 

LOW 132 20 14 98 132 (SCORE 10) 60.3% 15.2% 10.6% 74.2% 

MID n6 157 70 549 n6 (SCORE 11-22) 55.9% 20.2% 9.0% 70.7% 

HIGH 87 14 12 61 87 (SCORE 23+) 47.3% 16.1% 13.8% 70.1% 

A-TRAIT PASS FIELD OPTION FPL OR 

LEVELS ACADEMY ATTRITION SWITCH DE VEL TOTAL 

LOW 105 12 8 85 105 (SCORE 10) 62.9% 11.4% 7.6% 81.0% 

MID 797 158 75 564 797 

(SCORE 11-19) 56.0% 19.8% 9.4% 70.8% 

HIGH 93 21 13 59 93 (SCORE 20+) 46.7% 22.6% 14.0% 63.4% 

The proportions of trainees who reached FPL status or were still active in 

the developmental process by our July 1988 cut-off date showed the same 

relationships to anxiety score levels as had been obtained for Academy 

entrants, i.e. the highest proportions of successful trainees in field 

training were low in anxiety and the lowest proportions of successful 

trainees had high anxiety scores for both state and trait, although the 

relationships were stronger for the trait measure. This finding and the 

inconsistency of the state measure during field training is not 

particularly surprising since the state measure was obtained at entry into 

the Academy program and there existed a considerable opportunity for 

modification. It is interesting that the state measure would show such a 

relatively strong effect for the multi-week Academy course; similar results 

were obtained in studies of Naval aviators in flight training (1, 2, 3). 

Another way to examine the same relationships is to use the Academy 

entrants as the base for assessing both Academy and field training losses 

or option switches (see Table 5). Presented this way, both higher trait 

and higher state anxiety levels show the increasing failure ratios at the 

Academy and decreasing portions of those who reached FPL status (or were 

continuing as Developmentals). In field training, that inverse 

relationship of anxiety level with success held only for A-trait scores; 

A-state scores bore no regular relationship to either option switches or 

field attrition. The FPL success rates ranged from 50.9% to 39.6% to 29.6% 

for increasing A-trait levels and from 44.7% to 39.6% to 33.2% for 

increasing A-state levels. 

5 
TABLE V. A-STATE AND A-TRAIT ANXIETY AND OVERALL TRAINING PERFORMANCE. 

A-STATE ACADEMY FIELD OPTION FPLOR 

LEVELS ATTRITION ATTRITION SWITCH DE VEL TOTAL 

LOW 87 20 14 98 219 (SCORE 10) 39.7% 9.1% 6.4% 44.7% 100.0% 

MID 611 157 70 549 1387 (SCORE 11-22) 44.1% 11.3% 5.0% 39.6% 100.0% 

HIGH 97 14 12 61 184 (SCORE 23+) 52.7% 7.6% 6.5% 33.2% 100.0% 

A-TRAIT ACADEMY FIELD OPTION FPL OR 

LEVELS ATTRITION ATTRITION SWITCH DE VEL TOTAL 

LOW 62 12 8 85 167 (SCORE 10) 37.1% 7.2% 4.8% 50.9% 100.0% 

MID 627 158 75 564 1424 (SCORE 11-19) 44.0% 11.1% 5.3% 39.6% 100.0% 

HIGH 106 21 13 59 199 (SCORE 20+) 53.3% 10.6% 6.5% 29.6% 100.0% 

Combinations of state and trait levels into an S-T anxiety index were next 

examined with regard to Academy performance (see Table VI). Results 

indicated that (i) trainees with both high A-trait and high A-state scores, 

had a very low pass rate of only 36.5% and the highest rates of both 

failure and withdrawals, (ii) the lowest pass rates occurred for trainees 

who were high in trait or state anxiety, (iii) the highest pass rates 

occurred for trainees who were low in trait or state anxiety, (iv) the 

group of trainees with the highest pass rate was in the "mid/high state + 

low trait" anxiety classification. 

TABLE VI. STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY INDEX AND FAA ACADEMY PERFORMANCE. 

PASS FAIL WITHDRAW/ 

INDEX ACADEMY ACADEMY INCOMPLETE TOTAL 

LOWS+ 42 19 9 70 

LOWT 60.0% 27.1% 12.9% 100.0% 

MID/HIGHS+ 63 28 6 97 

LOWT 64.9% 28.9% 6.2% 100.0% 

LOWS+ 90 46 13 149 

MID/HIGHT 60.4% 30.9% 8.7% 100.0% 

MIDS + 651 385 133 1169 

MIDT 55.7% 32.9% 11.4% 100.0% 

HIGHS+ 59 35 15 109 

MIDT 54.1% 32.1% 13.8% 100.0% 

MIDS + 63 43 16 122 HIGHT 51.6% 35.2% 13.1% 100.0% 

HIGHS+ 27 34 13 74 HIGHT 36.5% 45.9% 17.6% 100.0% 

6 
Additional analyses were accomplished by separately collapsing the three 

low S-T index categories and the three high S-T index categories in Table 

VI into 11 Low Anxiety .. (low A-state or low A-trait) and 11 High Anxiety .. (high 

A-state or high A-trait) categories while retaining the 11 Mid S +Mid ru 

category. That analysis redistributed the number of subjects in each 

category due to the combining of scores while yielding results by anxiety 

category not markedly different from those reported in Tables IV and v. 

Table VII presents S-T anxiety index/training performance data for the 

three (collapsed) levels of anxiety. Based on this S-T anxiety index, 

trainees in the 11 Higher Anxiety .. category exhibited significantly higher 

(by chi-square test) percentages of (i) Academy failures/ withdrawals 

(p<.Ol), (ii) percentages of option switches (p<.05), and (iii) overall 

field attrition (p<.05) than did trainees in the 11 Lower Anxiety .. category. 

TABLE VII. STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY INDEX AND PERFORMANCE AT THE ACADEMY 

AND IN THE FIELD. 

S-T PASS 

INDEX ACADEMY 

LOW 195 

ANXIETY 61.7% 

MID 651 

ANXIETY 55.7% 

HIGH 149 

ANXIETY 48.9% 

S-T FIELD 

INDEX ATTRITION 

LOW 27 

ANXIETY 13.8% 

MID 135 

ANXIETY 20.7% 

HIGH 29 

ANXIETY 19.5% 

CONCLUSIONS 

FAIL 

ACADEMY 

93 

29.4% 

385 

32.9% 

112 

36.7% 

OPTION 

SWITCH 

18 

9.2% 

56 

8.6% 

22 

14.8% 

WITHDRAW/ 

INCOMPLETE 

28 

8.9% 

133 

11.4% 

44 

14.4% 

FPLOR 

DE VEL 

150 

76.9% 

460 

70.7% 

98 

65.8% 

TOTAL 

316 

100.0% 

1169 

100.0% 

305 

100.0% 

TOTAL 

195 

100.0% 

651 

100.0% 

149 

100.0% 

These results indicate that some personality-related self-selection 

regarding anxiety occurs among those who qualify for selection into the air 

traffic control training program. The average anxiety level of ATCS 

trainees is lower than that of college students and Naval recruits and, by 

inference based on older STAI scores, lower than that of Naval flight 

students. Despite the narrower distribution of anxiety scores among ATCSs, 

both A-trait and A-state scores were significantly related to pass rates at 

the FAA Academy and to sucess in field training. The relationship to 

training success of A-trait scores was, as might be predicted, better than 

that of A-state scores. An index based on combinations of state and trait 

levels indicated a significant relationship: high anxiety scores yielded 

high percentages of Academy failures/withdrawals, option switches, and 

7 
field attrition. 

Thus, the original self-selection implied by the relatively low anxiety 

among ATCS entrants is reinforced by the higher training failure rates of 

those with high levels (for ATCSs) of anxiety. That interaction yields an 

occupational group that has a high trait tolerance for circumstances that 

might produce anxiety in others. Therefore, we can infer that those who 

become air traffic controllers are well prepared, psychologically, for the 

demanding work they perform. 

8 
REFERENCES 

1. Bucky SF, Spielberger CD. State and trait anxiety in the student Naval 

aviator who voluntarily withdraws from flight training. Pensacola, FL: 

Naval Aerospace Med. Res. Lab., 1971. (NAMRL-1132) 

2. Bucky SF, Spielberger CD. State and trait anxiety in voluntary 

withdrawal of student Naval aviators from flight training. Psychol. 

Rep. 1973; 33:351-354. 

3. Bucky SF, Speilberger CD. Effects of instructions on measures of state 

and trait anxiety in flight students. J. of Appl. Psy. 1972; 

56:275-276. 

4. Collins WE, Boone JO, VanDeventer AD (Eds). The selection of air traffic 

control specialists: History and review of contributions by the Civil 

Aeromedical Institute, 1960-80. Aviat. Space Environ. Med. 1981; 

52:217-240. 

5. Manning CA , Kegg PS, Collins WE. Selection and screening programs for 

air traffic control specialists. In RS Jensen (Ed). Aviation 

Psychology. Aldershot, England: Gower, 1989; 321-341. 

6. Smith RC. Stress. Anxiety and the air 

surprising conclusions from a decade 

IG Sarason (Eds.) Stress and Anxiety 

1985; 95-109. 

traffic control specialist: Some 

of research. In CD Speilberger and 

(Vol.9). New York: Hemisphere, 

7. Spielberger CD. Preliminary manual for the State-Trait Personality 

Inventory. Tampa, FL: Human Resources Institute, U. of South Florida, 

1979. 

8. Stover SB, Spencer WB. Age and sex differences on the State-Trait 

Personality Inventory. Psychol. Rep. 1986; 59:1315-1319. 

9