Correctional Officers' Perceptions of Sexual Offenders in the United States: A Qualitative Analysis

Brian Greineder

Lincoln University of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, USA

Abstract:

Support for public policies aimed at increasing prison sentences for sexual offenders (SOs) has been mounting. The growing number of inmates in prisons places a burden on taxpayers and calls for solutions to reduce recidivism rates. Correctional officers (COs) are at the forefront of interacting with inmate populations. A review of the literature indicated that the perceptions of COs have been linked to an inmate's willingness to participant in rehabilitation programs. Moreover, SOs participating in rehabilitation programs have shown lower levels of recidivism. Thus it is important to describe the perceptions of COs regarding SOs. The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to describe the essence of the subjective lived experiences of 15 COs who were recruited both by purposeful sampling and snowball sampling. This research contributes to the existing literature and can promote social change through the development of prison training programs focused on educating COs on balancing negative views of SOs with professionalism.

Keyword:

Correctional Officers, Perceptions, Sexual Offenders, Recidivism, Policies.