NCJ Number
79796
Journal
Corrections Magazine Volume: 7 Issue: 5 Dated: (October 1981) Pages: 6-10,12-14
Date Published
1981
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the problem of stress experienced by correctional guards and various approaches that have been tried to help guards cope with this occupational hazard.
Abstract
In New Jersey, most of the State's correctional officers have been trained since 1977 in methods of coping with stress by Frances Cheek, a sociologist who emphasizes relaxation methods and behavior modification techniques. In New York, establishment of a stress training program was part of a settlement that ended a union strike by guards in 1979. In Michigan and Illinois, unions have commissioned research studies to determine the effects of stress on their employees. However, in many corrections systems, little is being done. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons has no systematic stress training for its officers. Some officers say that stress training has helped them to deal with their problems in a more constructive way by teaching them how to leave the job behind them when they leave work for the day. The California Department of Corrections estimates that workmen's compensation claims against the department will exceed $9 million dollars in 1981, with the majority of claims related to job stress. California pays out disability retirement funds equal to $12,000 a year for each active correction officer. Experts say that stress is inherent in the very nature of a correction officer's job; it is only made worse by conditions such as overcrowding, antiquated facilities, overtime, and low pay. Ways in which stress can disrupt an officer's life are detailed. Critics argue that corrections departments are slow to recognize stress as a factor in their operations and often take action only after a crisis occurs, such as a prison riot. Photographs are included.