NCJ Number
101647
Date Published
1986
Length
30 pages
Annotation
This paper examines correctional officer attitudes in a rapidly changing prison environment, significant problems guards face on the job, and the redefinition of the officer's role under current corrections conditions.
Abstract
The current rapidly changing prison environment has produced tension and uncertainty for correctional officers. Changes that have most affected officers are the emphasis on rehabilitation, a change in the size and composition of the inmate population, and court intervention in prison operations. Officer problems commonly experienced on the job are the threat of inmate attacks, role conflict and ambiguity, loss of control over inmates, racial and sexual integration of guard forces, and deviant guard behavior (corruption of authority, questionable disciplinary actions, and patterned guard violence). Contemporary corrections requires an expanded professional role for correctional officers that should include the hiring of women officers for male prisons, upgrading of pay and working conditions, careful screening of candidates, improved training, and organizational changes to structurally connect the guard role to other criminal justice fields to permit greater career< mobility. Officers should also have an enlarged role in prison management that offers skill variety, autonomy, task identity, and feedback. 102 references.