The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996, demands a fundamental reassessment and transformation of the nature and style of policing in South Africa. Based on a representative sample (N=1453) of newcomers in the South African Police Service, this article compares the presence of police culture thematic attitudes of male and female newcomers upon their arrival for basic training. The results indicate that female newcomers arrive for training with stronger attitudes in support of police culture solidarity, isolation and cynicism compared with their male counterparts who militate against the effective adoption of a community policing philosophy in South Africa.