Prison is power: Federal correctional officers, gender, and professional identity work

Abstract

Federal correctional officers (COs) face a compelling amount of professional stress and rigid professional expectations. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP), in an effort to improve employee wellness, has instituted a number of policies and programs addressing gender, sexual harassment, the treatment of inmates, and the role of the BOP in rehabilitation efforts. As a result, COs are navigating how they see themselves and their role within the BOP. Using interviews with 26 federal COs, we use the communication theory of identity (CTI) to explore how correctional workers are communicatively managing their professional identities as the BOP's policies shift. Officers described idealized professional identities in oppositional gendered terms (e.g., masculinity is privileged; femininity derided). Female-identifying officers described being unable to meet professional ideals, and some male-identifying officers struggled enacting their masculinity. However, COs described managing gaps between their personal and professional identities in ways that elucidated connections, rather than separation, between officers. We provide theoretical and practical implications from participant voices, including the use of CTI to better understand identity work processes in workplace contexts.

Gender, risk, and presentation of self in “caring” prison work: Insights from institutional parole officers in Canada

“…Recognizing they have little control over the risk‐laden setting of their performance, IPOs attempt to minimize vulnerabilities related to inherent aspects of their workplace by performing aspects of the confident and fearless masculinities also embodied by COs—often situating these gendered presentations of self within previous experiences of public safety work. In this process, much like women COs who seek acceptance by embodying characteristics of the hegemonic masculinity prized among security personnel (Britton, 2003; Compton & Brandhorst, 2021), some female IPOs perform elements of a masculine performance of gender to minimize their feelings of vulnerability.…”

“…Whereas female and male IPOs expressed similar impression management strategies concerning setting, their divergent gendered experiences with appearance and manner expose unequal gendered experiences of occupational risk in correctional work. In terms of appearance, some male IPOs reduced feelings of vulnerability by embracing an embodied masculinity premised on muscularity, the ability to handle potentially violent situations, stoicism, and calculated risk‐taking—not unlike male COs in many prison settings (e.g., Carter, 1996; Compton & Brandhorst, 2021; Crawley, 2013). In contrast, many female IPOs described their physique as a potential source of vulnerability, leading them to perform a “conservative” front that avoided or downplayed characteristics typically associated with femininity, such as formfitting clothing, jewelry, and makeup.…”

“…Most studies on prison workers' gender performances have focused exclusively on security staff, who are found, in various prison contexts, to perform masculinities founded on stoicism and toughness (e.g., Carter, 1996; Compton & Brandhorst 2021; Crawley, 2013; Ricciardelli, 2017, 2019)—to the neglect of other staff, such as IPOs, whose occupational responsibilities involve a rehabilitative component, and thus, may require performances of gender that diverge from those of COs. The research on COs' gendered impression management includes examinations of how such workers minimize their vulnerabilities to harm through performances of stoicism, a trait tied to masculinities, premised on imposing physiques and appearing “fearless and security‐oriented” (Ricciardelli, 2019, p. 15) or how they regulate their emotions in gendered ways to maintain an “appropriate” professional demeanor around prisoners and other staff members (Crawley, 2004).…”

“…In such a context, incarcerated persons and prison workers draw upon performances of gender to mitigate risk and reduce feelings of vulnerability (e.g., Crewe, 2009;de Viggiani, 2012;Jewkes, 2005;Maguire, 2021;Norman et al, 2021;Ricciardelli, 2017Ricciardelli, , 2019. Studies of prison workers have largely focused on security staff, namely correctional officers (COs), who work in a paramilitary organizational culture that often prizes displays of masculinities premised on characteristics such as stoicism, toughness, muscularity, and the ability to "hold one's own" in risky situations (e.g., Carter, 1996;Compton & Brandhorst 2021;Crawley, 2013;Ricciardelli, 2017Ricciardelli, , 2019-while also recognizing the fluid and relational nature of these occupational masculinities (e.g., Ricciardelli, 2019;Seymour, 2018). Less scholarly attention has been directed toward gendered performances of nonsecurity prison staff (e.g., chaplains, teachers, or program officers) who share the same workplaces and some of the same perceptions of risks as COs, yet perform duties oriented toward using interpersonal skills and helping others-characteristics that are usually culturally read as feminine and commonly associated with female-dominated helping professions, such as nursing or teaching (Griffin, 1997;Poole & Isaacs, 1997;Porter, 1992).…”

“Making a Difference”: Unpacking the Positives in Correctional Work and Prison Life From the Perspective of Correctional Workers

“…Having daily contact with PWAI, correctional officers (COs) are mandated to provide care, custody, and control in prisons (Ricciardelli, 2019). Much research has focused on describing a CW culture that is driven by security concerns, enhanced supervision and surveillance, penal governance and power, a distancing of rehabilitation goals, hypermasculinity, and punitive values (Compton & Brandhorst, 2021; Liebling, 2011b; Tracy, 2004; Tracy & Scott, 2006; Turnbull & Hannah-Moffat, 2009). Early studies described CWs as “keepers” (Tannenbaum, 1920) in charge of physically confining and emotionally suppressing those under their supervision (see also Sykes, 1958).…”