Abstract
The U.S. Navy continues to face persistent challenges in retaining highly trained nuclear-trained enlisted submariners prior to retirement eligibility, creating operational and strategic concerns for the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. This Dissertation in Practice examines the organizational, leadership, and motivational factors that influence voluntary separation from naval service among former nuclear-trained enlisted submariners. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore how former nuclear-trained enlisted submariners describe the influence of leadership, grit, and intrinsic motivation on their decisions to remain in or leave the U.S. Navy before reaching retirement eligibility. Guided by Motivation-Hygiene Theory and Job Embeddedness Theory, the study employed semi-structured interviews with former submariners to examine participants’ lived experiences and the meanings they attributed to their career decisions. This Dissertation in Practice is organized into three integrated sections. Section One presents the proposal, including the problem statement, literature review, research design, and methodology. Section Two contains a submission-ready journal manuscript prepared for dissemination through a scholarly publication. Section Three translates the scholarly findings into practitioner-focused recommendations, reflective analysis, and a leadership philosophy intended to support organizational improvement and leadership practice within the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program.
nuclear-trained submariners, retention, leadership, grit, intrinsic motivation