NCJ Number
84690
Journal
Psycholgical Reports Volume: 51 Issue: 1 Dated: (August 1982) Pages: 223-228
Date Published
1982
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Part of a project to upgrade selection and training of personnel in daily contact with prisoners, this study sought to determine if the personality profile of corrections officers resembles that of persons in similar occupations and if some measured personality characteristics of officers systematically relate to job performance.
Abstract
The subjects were 105 corrections officers in a metropolitan area and attendants at a county holding facility, who completed a self-report test of 186 items concerning normal personality. Also analyzed were agency files on the subjects' periodic employee performance reports on quality, quantity, and knowledge of work; punctuality; attitude; leadership ability; and other characteristics. The data supported similarities between corrections officers' profiles and those of police and mechanics, while the similarities with profiles of social workers and engineers were negligible. Noteworthy among the characteristics of corrections officers are control, low anxiety, and introversion. Personality characteristics predictive of first performance ratings among male officers were intelligence, control, conservativism, and self-sufficiency. Highly rated female officers showed a generally similar pattern but differed from male counterparts in being low on dominance and suspicion. Personality characteristics predictive of later performance ratings differed sharply from those predictive of first ratings. A hypothesis of self-selective turnover may explain the variation in predictability over occasions. Because corrections officers are casually selected, they move on to other jobs selectively, leaving those behind who are either adapted to a harsh system or who cannot go elsewhere. Tables and 10 references are given.