NCJ Number
177875
Journal
Criminal Justice Policy Review Volume: 9 Issue: 3-4 Dated: September/December 1998 Pages: 401-430
Date Published
1998
Length
30 pages
Annotation
This article reports findings from interviews with 120 adult male prisoners incarcerated within medium-security to high- security prisons in England; the interviews solicited their views on the deployment of female officers within the prisons in which they were held.
Abstract
Interview questions focused on the character of the interaction between inmates and correctional officers, both male and female; staff-inmate control issues; and inmate attitudes toward the employment of female guards in a male institution. Inmates' attitudes toward female officers were generally positive, and their interaction with the inmates was viewed by the inmates as having a calming effect. The inmates were more likely to report problems with male officers than female officers. Some of the older inmates criticized the younger inmates for not treating the female officers with more respect; however, apparently the younger inmates were merely treating female officers the same way they treated the male officers. The inmates as a group tended to treat the female officers with the respect and courtesy due females in traditional social male- female interactions. Hence, they were less likely to confront a female officer and were more likely to approach a female officer for help, perceiving them as more likely than males to listen to and respond to their needs. 8 tables and 28 references