Games guards play: a self-report study of institutional deviance within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Abstract

While most correctional officers adhere to the highest level of professionalism, some engage in institutional deviance during the course of their eight-hour shifts. In the present study, we administered 501 self-report questionnaires to correctional officers within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Respondents who reported that their supervisors were not supportive tended to admit to higher levels of institutional deviance than their peers, though peer support did not contribute to correctional officer deviance. Additionally, respondents who perceived their jobs to be less dangerous than other officers were more likely to have attitudes that were conducive to institutional deviance. Moreover, a perception of deviance among others also helped 'normalize' these acts in the prison setting and contributed to more favorable attitudes toward institutional deviance by correctional officers. Theory X and Theory Y is used to explain the lack of supervisory support that leads to institutional deviance among correctional officers. These findings have important policy implications toward reducing deviance among correctional officers, thereby making prison facilities safer and more secure.

A Hierarchical Analysis of Correctional Officers’ Procedural Justice Judgments of Correctional Institutions: Examining the Influence of Transformational Leadership

“…Like other agents of social control, where the power differential between agent and subordinate is large, compliance to organizational rules is critical. Still, some correctional officers engage in institutional deviance such as abuses of power (in the form of physical and psychological abuse) and corruption (Bowker, 1980;Tyler, Callahan, & Frost, 2007;Worley & Cheeseman, 2006;Worley & Worley, 2013). As such, correctional institutions are faced with the task of ensuring rule adherence not only among inmates but correctional officers as well.…”

Forced Sexual Victimization Among Youth in Custody: Do Risk Factors Vary by Gender and Perpetrator?

“…Promoting increased collective efficacy across correctional staff could create “a strong community of correctional staff who mutually trust and support one another” (Worley et al, 2018, p. 342). Development of such an environment could also reduce staff misconduct, as there is literature that suggests that correctional employees who view their supervisors as unsupportive are more likely than their coworkers to engage in acts of deviance, including behaving inappropriately with inmates (Worley & Worley, 2013).…”

Quantifying the Size of the Contraband Cell Phone Problem: Insights From a Large Rural State Penitentiary

“…How or why importation activity occurs is not well understood. In one of the few available studies examining why correctional officers violate policy and practice, R. M. Worley and Worley (2013) surveyed 501 officers in Texas. Officers who felt they either lacked support from supervisors, perceived ongoing officer-inmate misconduct among coworkers, or did not view their job duties as being dangerous were much more likely to self-report activities involving the distribution of contraband.…”