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Correctional staff are sometimes in fear of being injured on the job. Concerns about issues relating to inmate medical care could be related to feeling at risk on the job for staff. The current study explored how perceived inmate medical care issues were related to fear of being at risk on the job among staff at a large Southern US jail. The provided survey asked about staff about their concerns of being at risk and medical views dealing with if infectious diseases are handled correctly, if quality medical care was provided to inmates, if staff responded in a timely manner, if there was a high turnover of medical staff, and if inmate privacy rates put staff at risk. In a multivariate regression analysis, a view that inmate infectious diseases are handled correctly and quality medical care is provided were significantly related to lower levels fear of being in danger from the job, while the view that inmate medical privacy rights placed staff at risk had a positive effect. Views that staff respond quickly to inmate medical needs and that there is a high level of medical staff turnover both had nonsignificant effects on fear of being at risk at work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Correctional officers are a valuable and expensive resource for prisons. Working as a correctional officer is a unique experience; it involves controlling incarcerated individuals, and this results in demands that can wear on officers, increasing chances of suffering depression. Social support has been postulated to help buffer the negative effects of working in a prison and reduce depressive symptomatology. Using data from 501 correctional officers employed in a Southern prison system, this study examined the relationship between the three types of social support – family, coworker, and supervisor – on depression symptoms measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CESD) scale. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression results indicated both family support and supervisor support were significantly related to the level of depression symptoms; coworker support, however, had a nonsignificant association. The results indicate efforts should be made to raise family support and supervisor support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Staff are the most vital resource for any correctional facility. As corrections is a very expensive budget item in the U.S., finding and keeping dedicated employees is essential. Organizational commitment refers the bond between correctional staff and their institution. A strong bond is essential for the safety and security of both employees and inmates, as well as ensuring that the institution runs effectively. This review explores past research on three different types of organizational commitment (affective, moral, and continuance), in order to summarize past results and to reveal areas remaining unexplored. This paper examines both the antecedents and outcomes of organizational commitment. Through a systematic review of past studies, we have identified both positive and negative workplace factors that influence organizational commitment. In addition, we report how organizational commitment affects various outcomes, such as burnout and turnover intent. Understanding how to increase staff commitment can provide a blueprint for administrators to enhance correctional operations and employee satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Work-family conflict occurs when the domains of work and home spill over into one another leading to conflict, which is a real possibility for the unique occupation of policing. Work on family conflict, a subdomain of work-family conflict, occurs when issues at work spill over impacting home life. One form of work on family conflict is strain-based conflict, which is when work problems results in conflict at home, such being irritable at home or arguments with family members and friends. This study examined the relationship between organizational structure variables and work on family conflict strain among Indian police officers. India is the most populous democracy in the world, but little has been published in Western journals of how workplace variables maybe related to work on family strain among Indian officers. Among the organizational structure variables, instrumental communication, organizational support, formalization, distributive justice, and procedural justice each had negative relationships with work on family strain. Input into decision-making had a nonsignificant association. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A survey designed to measure attitudes on crime, punishment, and terrorism was administered using a systematic, convenience sampling design to 321 undergraduate students at two Midwestern public universities. Women and men had significantly different attitudes toward crime in general, with men tending to have more punitive attitudes toward criminals. The gender gap narrowed considerably when asked about the rights and punishments of terrorist suspects, and in some cases reversed entirely with women having more punitive attitudes than men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]