An Analysis of Canadian Police Recruitment Webpages: Clicking to Serve?

Police recruitment continues to be an international challenge. In response to such challenge, police agencies have developed various recruitment materials to try to attract prospective applicants to their agencies. Existing research on police recruitment materials has largely examined the American context, focusing predominantly on recruitment advertisements and video-based content. Far less attention has been given to police agencies’ use of recruitment webpages, especially in the Canadian context. This study addresses these gaps by analyzing the characteristics and messaging strategies of Canadian municipal police agencies’ recruitment webpages ( N = 74). The findings of our content analysis reveal some heterogeneity in the content of recruitment webpages, with a lack of key information that could enhance the appeal of policing as a career emerging as a recurring theme across many webpages. We discuss our findings in the context of police recruiting efforts, including by highlighting the potential benefits of improving the breadth, clarity, and relevance of information presented on police recruitment webpages.