Assessing the Value of Evidence

Understanding Research on Recruiting and Hiring

Police departments in the United States face substantial staffing issues resulting from attrition and increased competition for qualified individuals to fill vacancies. As a result, many police departments’ recruiting and hiring units are unsuccessful at meeting hiring goals. This issue can be compounded as agencies attempt to target specific groups in their hiring efforts. Either way, the inability to adequately hire enough individuals to meet demand reflects limitations in interest among job seekers as well as obstacles within departments’ hiring processes. Given the challenges, what are law enforcement agencies to do?