English

Noun

CDI factor ‎(uncountable)

1. (US, slang) An intangible quality, usually attributed to certain items of professional equipment but sometimes to particular positions within predominantly and traditionally male professions such as law enforcement and the military where the term is most frequently used, that is believed to stir inordinate interest in obtaining the item or position because it makes the possessor feel confident, cool and thus desirable to women.
   • Sweeney, Patrick; The Gun Digest Book of the AR-15, Volume 2 Gun Digest Books, 2007, p. 109

     "You don't buy a LaRue because you want lightweight. You buy it for the durability (And the CDI factor)"

   • Howe, Paul R.; Leadership and Training for the Fight: Using Special Operations Principles to Succeed in Law Enforcement, Business, and War Skyhorse Publishing, 2011, p. 12

     "Instead of donning their equipment for the right reasons, with the understanding that it takes thousands of hours to attain a basic skill level, some Special Operations soldiers wear their gear for the CDI (chicks dig it) factor and forget the reality that this is hard work."

   • NBC News, "Uncloaked: How Army is testing new camo to replace flawed design; July 17, 2012

     "'Never decide Pattern A just looks cooler than Pattern B. The Marine Corps call that a "CDI factor" – chicks dig it,' said Timothy O'Neill, a former professor of engineering psychology at West Point who has spent 37 years concocting and analyzing the latest in military camouflage"

   • Bolgiano, David G.; Banks, L. Morgan III; Patterson, James M.; Virtuous Policing: Bridging America's Gulf Between Police and Populace; CRC Press, 2015, p. 189

     "... SWAT is a highly-specialized skill that takes recurrent (and expensive) training to maintain. Simply kitting out police officers in high-CDI-factor equipment is not enough."

Usage notes

Often has at least a slightly pejorative connotation when referring to equipment, suggesting that the items in question are overrated at best and useless at worst.