Exploration of design strategies to enhance sustainability in South Korea’s conscription-based military system, suggesting a shift towards voluntary service.
This study explores future-oriented design alternatives for a sustainable military service system in South Korea. By assessing the sustainability and limitations of the current conscription-based system, the research employs SWOT-STEPPER analysis to identify key short-, mid-, and long-term tasks. The SWOT analysis highlights strengths such as low labor costs and stable troop recruitment while revealing economic inefficiencies and fairness concerns. The STEPPER analysis examines the potential impacts of societal, technological, demographic, and political changes on the system. Based on these insights, the study proposes strategies for gradual evolution, including integrating voluntary service within conscription, enhancing troop efficiency through military science and technology, increasing the participation of women and multicultural resources, and extending officers' retirement age. These measures aim to ensure the long-term sustainability of military service while aligning it with national security needs.
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Lee et al. (2025) studied this question.
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