Coping is an important concept to explain stress-related factors because it is a process that is mediated by both primary, and secondary appraisal (Lazarus &amp / Folkman, 1984). The present study aims to examine the extent to which correctional officers&#039 / cognitive appraisal associated with stress, and to develop, and test models including work stress, cognitive appraisal of stress, affect-related variables, coping strategies, psychological distress, and psychological adjustment. For this aim, a total of 268 correctional officers from seven different prisons in Turkey participated in the present study. The subjects were given Stress Appraisal Measure (SAM), Work Stress Scale for Correctional Officers (WSSCO), Positive, and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Emotional Approach Coping Scale (EACS), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait Form (STAI-T), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Job Satisfaction Scale (JSS), and The Ways of Coping Inventory (WCI) in addition to Demographic Information Form. A variety of hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to reveal the significant associates of psychological distress and adjustment. According to the results of regression analyses, four models were developed, and tested by structural equation modeling. The results of the present study demonstrated that different cognitive appraisals, different affect-related variables, different coping strategies combined to influence psychological distress, and psychological adjustment measures in addition to the direct effects of work stress. Following discussion of the results in terms of theoretical, and methodological perspectives, the limitations of the present study, and the suggestions for future research were also handled.

I denna studie uppmärksammas hotfulla och våldsamma situationer i kriminalvården. Syftet har varit att undersöka vilka känslor som uppstår hos kriminalvårdare i dessa situationer. I samband med detta har studien syftat till att få en djupare förståelse för vilken betydelse kollegor har för de känslor som uppstår och för hur känslorna hanteras. Studien bygger på kvalitativa intervjuer av halvstrukturerad karaktär. Totalt genomfördes tio intervjuer med yrkesverksamma kriminalvårdare från häktesverksamheten i Stockholm och Uppsala. Gemensamt för kriminalvårdarna var att de upplevt hot och våld i arbetet. För att få en djupare förståelse för kriminalvårdarnas beskrivningar har dessa analyserats utifrån Arlie Russell Hochschilds teori om emotioner samt Randall Collins teori om interaktionsritualer. Gemensamt för dessa teorier är att de belyser aspekter av hantering av känslor, både på individ- och gruppnivå. Studiens resultat visar att olika känslor uppstår hos kriminalvårdarna vid hotfulla och våldsamma situationer samt att kollegors närvaro har betydelse hur dessa känslor hanteras. Förväntningar från kollegor påverkar kriminalvårdarna att trycka undan känslor som oro, stress och rädsla. Istället uppvisar kriminalvårdarna lugn och kontroll för att agera i linje med gruppens förväntningar. Resultatet visar även att god sammanhållning inom arbetsgruppen leder till känslor av trygghet och lugn hos kriminalvårdarna i hotfulla och våldsamma situationer. I dessa situationer är gruppens sammansättning även av betydelse. Vilka samt hur många kollegor som närvarar påverkar kriminalvårdarnas hantering av känslor. Resultatet visar att kollegor även har betydelse för hur kriminalvårdarna hanterar sina känslor efter att de utsatts för hot och våld. Här beskrevs debriefing som ett effektivt verktyg för att ventilera känslor med kollegor. Hur debriefing används i praktiken skiljde sig åt i kriminalvårdarnas beskrivningar. / This study highlights threats and violence within correctional facilities, where the focus is directed towards the correctional officers' feelings that arise in these situations. The aim of this study has been to examine if colleagues' presence has an impact on the emotions that the correctional officers experience and on how these emotions are handled. The study is based on qualitative interviews of semi-structured character. A total of ten interviews were conducted with correctional officers from correctional facilities in Stockholm and Uppsala. What the correctional officer's has in common is that they all have experienced threats and violence at their workplace. The correctional officers' descriptions have been analyzed on the basis of Arlie Russel Hochschild's theory of emotions and Randall Collins's theory of interaction rituals. Both theories highlight aspects of the management of emotions, on an individual as well as on a group level. The result of the study indicates that the correctional officers experience different feelings in threatening and violent situations. In these situations the presence of colleagues is significant when it comes to how correctional officers are handling their emotions. Expectations from colleagues seem to affect the correctional officers to hide feelings such as anxiety, stress and fear. Instead the correctional officers show feelings of calm and control which, according to them, complies with the colleagues' expectations. The result also shows that good cohesiveness within the working group affects the correctional officers to feel calm in threatening and violent situations. Other factors that seem to affect the emotions that correctional officers experience and how the emotions are handled are which colleagues the correctional officers are working with and how many colleagues that attends in the situation. Furthermore the result indicates that colleagues have a significant importance when it comes to handling emotions after threatening and violent situations. Debriefing was described as important, by the correctional officers, to vent their emotions after a critical situation. How the debriefing was applied in practice differed among the correctional officers.

Stress among correctional officers is widespread, according to research studies and anecdotal evidence. The threat of inmate violence against correctional officers, actual violence committed by inmates, inmate demands and manipulation and problems with co-workers are conditions that officers have reported in recent years that can cause stress. These factors, combined with understaffing, extensive overtime, rotating shift work, low pay, poor public image, and other sources of stress, can impair officers' health, cause them to bum out or retire prematurely, and impair their family life. Despite these weaknesses and malfunctioning in correctional settings, many officers are still committed in their work, until they reach their set pension dates. Such officers show intense focus and high levels of enthusiasm. With the upcoming positive paradigm in Occupational Health Psychology, "positive" trends such as work engagement, organisational commitment and individual commitment are also common among correctional officers. The first step in the enhancement of total spectrum of work-related well-being, from unwell-being (burnout) to well-being (work engagement) is the successful diagnosis of stress, burnout and work engagement. However, it is important to use reliable and valid instruments to measure these constructs. The objective of this study in the Department of Correctional Services was to standardise an Organisational Stress Screening Tool (ASSET), an adapted version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey (MBI - GS) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) for correctional officers in South Africa, in order to determine their levels of occupational stress, burnout, work engagement, organisational commitment and ill health (based on their biographical characteristics), and to test a structural model of work wellness. A cross-sectional survey design was used, with stratified random samples (N = 897) taken of correctional officers in the 48 prisons in South Africa. An Organisational Stress Screening Tool, the Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, the Job - Demands Resources Questionnaire, the Health and Organisational Commitment subscales of the ASSET, and a biographical questionnaire were administered. Cronbach alpha coefficients, exploratory factor analyses, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), T-tests and multiple regression analysis were used to analyse the data. Structural equation modelling was used to test a structural model of work related well-being. Significant differences in stress levels based on biographical characteristics revealed a statistically significant difference regarding how correctional officers of different age groups experience stress as a result of job overload and commitment from the organisation towards its own employees. A practically significant difference between correctional officers aged 20- 30 and 50-60 years of age, concerning the experience of stress as a result of job control, was also found. Another statistically significant difference was found concerning how correctional officers with different years of experience in the current job experienced stress as a result of job overload and work relationships. Work relationships contributed to a statistically significant difference between correctional officers with different years of experience in the current prison. Statistically significant differences also existed with regard to the experience of stress between correctional officers with different ranks as a result of job overload and work/life balance. Lastly, no statistically significant gender differences were found among male and female correctional officers in South Africa. This finding on gender, is in contrast with most of the empirical research on gender differences, which suggests that women appear to experience higher levels of stress in comparison to males. Exploratory factor analyses with target rotations resulted in a three-factor model of burnout consisting of Exhaustion, Cynicism and Professional Efficacy. The scales showed acceptable internal consistencies and construct equivalence for two language groups (Afrikaans/English and African). Regarding the differences in the burnout levels between language groups, a significant effect of language on the combined dependent variable Burnout was revealed. Analysis of each individual dependent variable showed that there were no significant differences between the levels of Exhaustion and Cynicism in the two language groups. The two groups differed in terms of the level of Professional Efficacy, where the English/Afrikaans group showed higher levels of Professional Efficacy. No significant effect of qualification and rank on the combined dependent variable Burnout was found. However, the language groups (English/Afrikaans) and (Africans) differed in terms of the level of Exhaustion where the Africans showed higher levels of Exhaustion. Furthermore, there was a significant effect of job on the combined dependent variable Burnout. Significant differences existed between language groups as a result of the levels of Exhaustion, Cynicism and Professional Efficacy. Finally, compared to the normative sample, 32,4% of correctional officers experience high levels of Exhaustion, while 38,6% experience high Cynicism and 32,1% show low Professional Efficacy. Exploratory factor analyses with target rotations resulted in a one-factor model of work engagement, consisting of Vigour/Dedication. The scales showed acceptable construct and internal equivalence for two language groups (Afrikaans and English). Although no practically significant differences between language groups of correctional officers in South Africa were found, it did reveal statistically significant higher levels of work engagement for Africans as compared to the Afrikaans/English language group. Furthermore, regarding differences in engagement levels based on qualifications and ranks, the findings revealed a statistically significant difference based on qualifications, and not on rank. No significant gender differences were found. With regard to aspects that enervated work-related well-being, the model showed that job demands (overload) and lack of job resources had an impact on burnout. Burnout, furthermore, mediated the relationship between job demands and ill health among correctional officers. The structural model revealed that work-related well-being mediated the relationship between job resources and organisational commitment. Correctional officers were likely to be victims of burnout and consequently ill health when an increase in job demands is not matched with an increase in job resources. The availability of job resources lead to work-related wellbeing, which will turn into organisational commitment. Recommendations for future research were made. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Stress among correctional officers is widespread, according to research studies and anecdotal evidence. The threat of inmate violence against correctional officers, actual violence committed by inmates, inmate demands and manipulation and problems with co-workers are conditions that officers have reported in recent years that can cause stress. These factors, combined with understaffing, extensive overtime, rotating shift work, low pay, poor public image, and other sources of stress, can impair officers' health, cause them to bum out or retire prematurely, and impair their family life. Despite these weaknesses and malfunctioning in correctional settings, many officers are still committed in their work, until they reach their set pension dates. Such officers show intense focus and high levels of enthusiasm. With the upcoming positive paradigm in Occupational Health Psychology, "positive" trends such as work engagement, organisational commitment and individual commitment are also common among correctional officers. The first step in the enhancement of total spectrum of work-related well-being, from unwell-being (burnout) to well-being (work engagement) is the successful diagnosis of stress, burnout and work engagement. However, it is important to use reliable and valid instruments to measure these constructs. The objective of this study in the Department of Correctional Services was to standardise an Organisational Stress Screening Tool (ASSET), an adapted version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey (MBI - GS) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) for correctional officers in South Africa, in order to determine their levels of occupational stress, burnout, work engagement, organisational commitment and ill health (based on their biographical characteristics), and to test a structural model of work wellness. A cross-sectional survey design was used, with stratified random samples (N = 897) taken of correctional officers in the 48 prisons in South Africa. An Organisational Stress Screening Tool, the Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, the Job - Demands Resources Questionnaire, the Health and Organisational Commitment subscales of the ASSET, and a biographical questionnaire were administered. Cronbach alpha coefficients, exploratory factor analyses, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), T-tests and multiple regression analysis were used to analyse the data. Structural equation modelling was used to test a structural model of work related well-being. Significant differences in stress levels based on biographical characteristics revealed a statistically significant difference regarding how correctional officers of different age groups experience stress as a result of job overload and commitment from the organisation towards its own employees. A practically significant difference between correctional officers aged 20- 30 and 50-60 years of age, concerning the experience of stress as a result of job control, was also found. Another statistically significant difference was found concerning how correctional officers with different years of experience in the current job experienced stress as a result of job overload and work relationships. Work relationships contributed to a statistically significant difference between correctional officers with different years of experience in the current prison. Statistically significant differences also existed with regard to the experience of stress between correctional officers with different ranks as a result of job overload and work/life balance. Lastly, no statistically significant gender differences were found among male and female correctional officers in South Africa. This finding on gender, is in contrast with most of the empirical research on gender differences, which suggests that women appear to experience higher levels of stress in comparison to males. Exploratory factor analyses with target rotations resulted in a three-factor model of burnout consisting of Exhaustion, Cynicism and Professional Efficacy. The scales showed acceptable internal consistencies and construct equivalence for two language groups (Afrikaans/English and African). Regarding the differences in the burnout levels between language groups, a significant effect of language on the combined dependent variable Burnout was revealed. Analysis of each individual dependent variable showed that there were no significant differences between the levels of Exhaustion and Cynicism in the two language groups. The two groups differed in terms of the level of Professional Efficacy, where the English/Afrikaans group showed higher levels of Professional Efficacy. No significant effect of qualification and rank on the combined dependent variable Burnout was found. However, the language groups (English/Afrikaans) and (Africans) differed in terms of the level of Exhaustion where the Africans showed higher levels of Exhaustion. Furthermore, there was a significant effect of job on the combined dependent variable Burnout. Significant differences existed between language groups as a result of the levels of Exhaustion, Cynicism and Professional Efficacy. Finally, compared to the normative sample, 32,4% of correctional officers experience high levels of Exhaustion, while 38,6% experience high Cynicism and 32,1% show low Professional Efficacy. Exploratory factor analyses with target rotations resulted in a one-factor model of work engagement, consisting of Vigour/Dedication. The scales showed acceptable construct and internal equivalence for two language groups (Afrikaans and English). Although no practically significant differences between language groups of correctional officers in South Africa were found, it did reveal statistically significant higher levels of work engagement for Africans as compared to the Afrikaans/English language group. Furthermore, regarding differences in engagement levels based on qualifications and ranks, the findings revealed a statistically significant difference based on qualifications, and not on rank. No significant gender differences were found. With regard to aspects that enervated work-related well-being, the model showed that job demands (overload) and lack of job resources had an impact on burnout. Burnout, furthermore, mediated the relationship between job demands and ill health among correctional officers. The structural model revealed that work-related well-being mediated the relationship between job resources and organisational commitment. Correctional officers were likely to be victims of burnout and consequently ill health when an increase in job demands is not matched with an increase in job resources. The availability of job resources lead to work-related wellbeing, which will turn into organisational commitment. Recommendations for future research were made. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between Tennessee wardens’ leadership practices and correctional officer job satisfaction. Utilizing the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI), the relationship between correctional officers’ perception of the warden’s leadership practices and the LPI norms were examined. Additionally, utilizing the LPI, the relationship between self-ratings of the warden’s leadership practices and the observer rating of the LPI were assessed. Lastly, utilizing the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS) and observer LPI, correlations were examined between the correctional officers’ job satisfaction and their perception of the warden’s leadership practices. Findings of this study showed lower correctional officers ratings of the wardens on the five LPI subscales than the inventory’s norms. In a comparison of the LPI wardens’ self-perception and the correctional officers’ observer perception, correctional officers rated the wardens lower than the wardens rated themselves. The overall ratings of the correctional officer Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS)were neutral. However, of the nine JSS subscales, the results identified the nature of their work and supervision as the most positive. Pay, contingent reward, and promotional opportunities were rated as the primary reasons for job dissatisfaction. Additional findings indicated a positive relationship between job satisfaction and each of the five subscales of the LPI. / Doctor of Philosophy in Leadership

This study investigates the relationships between humble leadership, reflecting dialogue, psychological safety, and job satisfaction among correctional officers in Japanese correctional institutions. Correctional officers face high levels of stress due to their demanding roles in rehabilitating and managing inmates, yet the impact of organizational factors on their job satisfaction remains underexplored. As Japan undergoes significant changes in its penal system, understanding the factors that contribute to a supportive work environment is crucial. First, this study examines the relationship between psychological safety and job satisfaction among correctional officers. Second, it explores whether facilities that practice reflecting dialogue and humble leadership experience higher levels of psychological safety compared to other institutions. By investigating the influence of humble leadership—characterized by leaders who recognizes their own limitations and potential while striving to understand team members on a personal level—and reflecting dialogue—a method promoting open discussion—, this study aims to provide insights into how psychological safety can be enhanced, ultimately leading to improved job satisfaction among correctional staff.