Introduction
Background
According to Hooley, Marriott, Watts, & Coiffait (2012), a career depicts the journey of a person including learning, work as well as other aspects of life. In this regard, Hooley, Marriott, Watts, & Coiffait (2012) perceive career as “an individual’s progress through the various phases of life.” Basing on this definition, it is evident that career entails various aspects associated with a person’s life, work and learning. In most cases, career is often linked to the working aspects of a person’s life. In this regard, Echaore-McDavid (2006) defines career as “a profession or occupation, which often entails either formal education or specialized training, or both, and is usually taken to be an individual’s lifework.” In the light of this view, a “career” is perceived to comprise of a series of related jobs that a person usually pursues within a single sector or industry such as “a career in medicine” or “a career in teaching” among others.
As Hess, Orthmann, & Cho (2012) explain, a person’s career choice is determined by the objective factors, critical contact factors or subjective factors. With regard to subjective factors, it is presumed that an individual is rational when selecting a career in the sense that he/she undertakes an objective evaluation of the potential tangible benefits associated with the job such as opportunities for advancement, location and salary among other benefits (Smith & Flanagan, 2000). With respect to subjective factors, it is presumed that the choice of career is mainly influenced by psychological and social factors including the organization’s reputation as well as the status associated with the job. Regarding critical contact factors, an individual’s observation when interacting with a firm plays a pivotal role in determining the choice of career. However, Echaore-McDavid (2006) points out that these theories presume that people have free choice of careers and employers, but in reality, strong competition coupled with scarcity of employment plays an overriding role.
Smith & Flanagan (2000) explored a number of factors that make people change their careers. Over time, it is expected that the labor market as well as the individual will be subjected to some changes; as a result, people are likely to change their careers in the course of their lives. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (2013), “people usually hold at least 10 jobs in the course of their career.” Career changing can be attributed to a number of factors including new opportunities and challenges arising, restructuring or downsizing of firms, ineffective leadership, poor relationship with the top management, need to improve work/life balance, failure to recognize one’s contributions, the search for better benefits and compensations, search for better alignment between organizational and personal values, financial instability of a firm, and the relocation of organizations. As Smith & Flanagan (2000) point out, 33% of the currently employed usually spend at least one hour daily looking for other career opportunities.
Research Aims
Echaore-McDavid (2006) considers career exploration to be crucial because it enables an individual to focus in the long term, make decisions regarding one’s study habits and classes and reflect on education goals. This career research project was undertaken with the primary objective of discovering the aspects associated with the researcher’s career of choice (detective). Specifically, the research sought to explore aspects associated with job description, personal characteristics required, education needed, the work setting, wages and benefits, employment outlook and a personal assessment to determine if the career is appropriate for the researcher. Essentially, the researcher sought to gather information relating to the career that he is intending to pursue.
Research Methods
This research project used primary data, which refers to data gathered by the researcher through interaction with the respondents. In order to gather information for this research project, the researcher conducted an in-depth interview with a person who already pursuing the same career. According to Smith & Flanagan (2000), interview involves asking and answering questions, which are then recorded for analysis and interpretation. The researcher used elaboration probes, which are mainly designed with the aim of motivating the interviewee to talk more regarding the topic being investigated. The interviewee, a practicing detective at Hillside Police Department, New Jersey, was asked questions relating to the job duties of a detective, the personal characteristics needed, education required, work setting, wages and benefits and employment outlook among others.
Findings
Regarding the requirements for a being a detective, the interviewee pointed out that they vary according to the state’s departments as well as the work position. Essentially, a detective should be able to demonstrate responsibility and independence. According to the interviewee, “when one becomes a detective, no one babysits him/her, and that a detective has to be independent”, which makes independence and responsibility vital as a part of personal characteristics required for a detective. Regarding the personal characteristics required, Smith & Flanagan (2000) explain that a “successful detective ought to be an observant, possess excellent oral and written communication skills, be approachable in order to gain trust and confidence of witnesses who can give valuable information, be a critical thinker, and sufficiently decisive to undertake actions when needed.” In addition, a detective must be open-minded because the job involves more “behind the scenes work” when compared to other law enforcement jobs such as police officers. According to the interviewee, being a detective does not require one to have a college degree; rather, one should take the state test and score accordingly. These tests vary in different states. In addition, there are no physical tests conducted every year for detectives. As Hess, Orthmann, & Cho (2012) explain, “being a detective requires one to demonstrate success as a law enforcement officer.” In most cases, acquiring the title of a detective requires one to work hard as a uniformed police officer. Nevertheless, this requirement varies according to police department’s policies as well as state policies. The detective job requires one to get the experience as a uniformed police officer. In other words, there are no entry jobs as a detective.
With respect to the wages and benefits, the interviewee pointed out that the pay is good and depends on the town or state that hired the detective. Generally, detective working in small towns earn less money when compared to detectives working in large cities. Averagely, the interviewee pointed out that the salary range for a detective varies between $ 30,000 and $ 40,000 per year. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics also pointed that the detective salary varies according to the area one is operating in. However, detectives earn an average salary of $ 55,010 annually, which translates to an hourly rate of $ 26 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, 2013).
With respect to the work settings, the interviewee pointed out that he works between Tuesday and Friday (11 am to 8 pm). However, this is not fixed schedule because there are instances when a detective is forced to report early depending on the assignment at hand. In addition, detectives can also patrol, such as back up. Normally, detectives go to patrol to look for information and get feedback on the ground. In addition, when looking for someone outside to help with the cases, it is imperative for a detective to choose individuals who are not familiar with him. In a detective work setting, everybody is a partner although a detective is assigned one individual with whom he is supposed to work together in handling the cases. Being a detective is stressing and mentally draining, rather than physical, since it involves a lot of thinking in order to be proactive in any case. Some of the cases could involve gun jobs, car chases, drug jobs and stabbings. Detectives usually draw gratification when offenders are incriminated and justice served to the victims of crime. In addition, losing a case can be stressing for a detective. The work of detective is extremely tiring due to irregular working hours. Another characteristic associated with the detective job is the likelihood of being emotionally attached to victims, especially kids. Moreover, the detective job can also be horrifying, which can be attributed to cases involving the elderly passing away, fatal and bad accidents, and motor cycle accidents among others. When confronted with gruesome scenes, serious injuries and victims of brutal deaths, Sawers & Police (2008) assert that detectives have to control their emotions when dealing with individuals who are suspected to have committed the violent crimes. Solving a case depends on a number of factors such as the type of case, the availability of witnesses and availability of evidence.
To be fit as a detective, one ought to be fair and responsible and treat other individuals with respect and dignity. Being a detective is a respectable job which comes with power. However, one ought to be responsible and fair both on and off the job.
Conclusion
From the interview, there is no doubt that being a detective requires independence and responsibility. Other personal attributes required of a detective include open-mindedness, being observant and sociable. Moreover, a successful detective must be a critical thinker and decisive enough to undertake proper actions when needed. There is no doubt that being a professional detective is a respectable job. Therefore, a detective must bear responsibility for treating people fairly, off and on the job. Overall, this occupation is ideal for the researcher because the researcher’s values, interests and educational plans fit with the personality, educational requirements and the work environment of a detective job. The researcher is of the view that working as a detective will allow him/her to solve crimes as well as serve justice.
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