Job stress and burnout among correctional officers: A literature review

This literature review presents an overview of occupational stress and burn out in correctional institutions, based on 43 investigations from 9 countri es. First, the prevalence of various stress reactions among correctional of ficers (COs) is discussed: turnover and absenteeism rates, psychosomatic di seases, and levels of job dissatisfaction and burnout. Next, empirical evid ence is summarized for the existence of 10 specific stressors in the CO's j ob. It appears that the most notable stressors for COs are role problems, w ork overload, demanding social contacts (with prisoners, colleagues, and su pervisors), and poor social status. Finally, based on 21 articles, individu al-oriented and organization-oriented approaches to reduce job stress and b urnout among COs are discussed. It is concluded that particularly the latte r (i.e., improving human resources management, professionalization of the C O's job, and improvement of the social work environment) seems to be a prom ising avenue for reducing job stress and burnout in correctional institutio ns.