The Influence of Higher Education on Promotional Outcomes in the New Jersey State Police

Abstract

This study examined the strength of four predictor variables (i.e., level of education, seniority, gender and race) found in the archival data provided by the New Jersey State Police to predict the likelihood of promotional outcomes for five separate and distinct participant groups (i.e., Sergeant, Sergeant First Class, Lieutenant, Captain, and Major). Five separate participant group analyses were conducted using binary logistic regression modelling. The participant data examined in this study, which represents a total population sample, pertained to 3,515 enlisted members of the New Jersey State Police considered for promotion during one, or both, of the promotional events held on September 14, 2012 and October 25, 2011 to one of the aforementioned ranks. For each participant group, with the exception of the Promotion to Major participant group, the results of this study revealed education, when controlling for other predictor variables in the binary logistic regression model, to be the strongest predictor of promotional outcomes, while seniority was the second strongest predictor of promotional outcomes. Gender and race were not statistically significant. As a result, the null hypotheses for these participant groups were rejected. The null hypothesis for the Promotion to Major group was retained due to the statistical insignificance of the chi square statistic and all four predictor variables in the binary logistic regression model

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