Moral Recruitment

Reverse of 1985 book, Devil Take The Youngest, with moral-recruiter hyperbole

Moral Recruitment is the act of socially and politically mobilizing part of a population (for example, women or parents) towards a goal that serves the interests of the recruiter (for example, governments, NGOs and/or the medical establishment). Typically, a series of emotional appeals are made by the recruiter/s, in order to convince the target population that taking a particular course of action is not only necessary and in their best interests, but a "matter of urgency".

Moral recruitment may act in direct antagonism against (and competition with) more direct forms of recruitment (financial, for example - prostitution). Thus, it is arguable that moral recruiters have a vested interest in the perpetuation of social stigmas (female "purity" discourse) that attach a negative value to "undesirable" forms of recruitment (i.e. juvenile "prostitution").

The concept was mentioned by M. Rodríguez García in a 2012 paper analyzing the League of Nations' response to trafficking and sexual exploitation of women and girls.

See also

• Moral panic and the historical timeline of events.
• Moral enterprise