The reasons for choosing a career in policing among South Korean police cadets

Despite the importance of understanding the reasons for choosing the police as an occupation for developing effective recruiting strategies, there is a surprising lack of research about what motivates people to choose careers in policing in South Korea. Employing the sample of 410 Korean police cadets, the study found that a financial factor — “steady salary” and “job security” — was the most important factor affecting the decisions of police cadets to join the police. Regression analyses indicated that gender and social-economic status had significant effects on cadets' motivation of joining the police. In the conclusion, policy implications for developing an effective recruitment strategy are discussed.