Aspirations of Hispanic criminal justice students to join law enforcement: an empirical investigation

Abstract

This study investigates the job preferences of criminal justice (CJ) students and potential factors that may impact their application for law enforcement positions. Existing research has shown that factors like gender, race, and class standing influence career choices among CJ majors. To contribute to this body of knowledge, this study focuses on CJ students’ attitudes toward the police and willingness to engage in community policing programs. The research examined 231 CJ students in a Hispanic serving university situated along the US-Mexican border. Research findings indicate that CJ students are less likely to pursue law enforcement careers if they hold less favorable attitudes toward the police or are unwilling to participate in ride-along programs. The study concludes with policy implications.

Keywords:

• Community policing program
• criminal justice students
• job preference
• public attitudes

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Yudu Li

Dr. Yudu Li is an associate professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. His research interests include comparative criminology/criminal justice, court and sentencing, death penalty study, law enforcement and administration, and criminological theories.

Lucas Espinoza

Dr. Lucas Espinoza is an associate professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. His research interests include culture and identity, Latin@ disparities, social justice rights/issues, gender & women’s studies, Mexican American studies, and social science methodology & statistics.

Charlotte Hu

Dr. Charlotte Hu is an assistant professor of practice in the School of Government and Public Policy at University of Arizona. Her research interests include courts and sentencing, cybercrime, and white-collar crime.

Fei Luo

Dr. Fei Luo is an associate professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at the Texas A&M International University. Her research interests include policing, immigrants, victimization, and legal studies.