This study aims to provide an objective evaluation framework for future military reform by performing a Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA) of the main alternatives to the current military service system ; the conscription system, the mixed conscription...
This study aims to provide an objective evaluation framework for future military reform by performing a Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA) of the main alternatives to the current military service system ; the conscription system, the mixed conscription–volunteer system and the all-volunteer system. To this end, the effectiveness of each system was defined as the level of military strength, calculated as a combination of manpower and accumulated military capital. This effectiveness was quantitatively estimated using a regression model developed based on data on NATO member states’ troop and defense expenditures from 2014 to 2025. In addition, to estimate the maintenance cost of manpower in each system, a model was constructed that reflects changes in available conscription resources (20-year-old male population) and the relationship between salaries and enlistment rates, thereby allowing estimation of active-duty force size and operational costs.
The analysis shows that under the current conscription system, a decline in military capability is inevitable in the medium to long term due to the reduction in available manpower. In contrast, the mixed recruitment system was evaluated as the most cost-effective of the three alternatives, while the all-volunteer system showed limitations in maintaining military capability. Furthermore, the study examined how different levels of defense budgets and demographic scenarios affect the cost-effectiveness of each system. Based on these findings, policy implications for improving South Korea’s military service system were derived in the context of decreasing manpower resources.