NCJ Number
242841
Journal
Punishment & Society Volume: 14 Issue: 5 Dated: December 2012 Pages: 503-529
Date Published
December 2012
Length
27 pages
Annotation
This study examined data on the attitudes of workers who are tasked with the day-to-day oversight of State prisons.
Abstract
Although the United States has grown increasingly punitive in the last three decades, there is considerable variation across States. On a variety of indicators, California is much more punitive than Minnesota. Using data from two original, large-N surveys, the authors analyzed whether these differences in the orientations of State correctional systems were reflected in the attitudes of workers who are tasked with the day-to-day oversight of State prisons. With respect to the purpose of imprisonment, the authors found that California prison officers were significantly more punitive than those in Minnesota. In contrast, officers in each State expressed similar levels of support for basic rehabilitation programs. Based on these findings, the authors propose an embedded work role perspective, which posits that officers across States reflect a shared position within the prison organization, but that the prisons in which they work are embedded in broader penal and political environments that predict differences in attitudes across state contexts. This conceptualization of prison officer orientations has implications for policymakers, prison administrators, and scholars concerned with the politics and practice of work and incarceration. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.