Abstract
With growing numbers of female staff in correctional settings, issues relating to promotional fairness are certain to occur. Historically, female detention staff held perceptions of being discriminated against in the promotional process due to gender biases. However, there is almost no recent examination of these perceptions. The current study addresses this shortcoming in the literature by using a sample of 362 sworn detention deputies ranked Sergeant and below at a large southern-central United States jail. Contrary to the data from a generation ago, more male detention staff perceive gender biases in the promotional process than females, and report that promotional decisions are based on arbitrary and informal factors. Women are more likely to perceive promotions to be fair and based on merit. Results are discussed in relation to two theoretical perspectives: the importation-differential experiences model, and the work-role prisonization model.
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Notes
A parallel viewpoint of the study’s objectives focuses on the concepts of procedural justice or procedural fairness (see Greenberg 1986). In the context of the current study, procedural justice relates to the perceptions that procedures and processes within a correctional setting are fair (Thibaut and Walker 1975). Therefore, the processes in which decisions are made are done in a just and unbiased manner (Folger and Cropanzano 1998; Lambert 2003). Procedural justice also includes the degree to which staff is treated throughout the decision-making process, and also the type of information that they are provided (Lambert et al. 2011). For instance, prior research has found that perceptions of procedural justice are predictive of decreased job stress and burnout in correctional staff (Lambert et al. 2007a; 2010b; 2010c). Since the current study examines gender differences in the perceptions of fairness and equality within the promotional process in a jail institution, procedural justice is an important factor (see also Lambert and Hogan 2013). There is also the possibility that perceptions of procedural justice in a correctional setting may differ by gender. However, only a limited number of studies have examined gender differences of correctional staff in their beliefs of procedural justice (see Lambert et al. 2007a; Lambert et al. 2007b). While in these two studies, perceptions were not different across male and female employees, it is too early to conclude that males and females who work in a correctional setting share similar views on procedural justice.
As described earlier, amendments to Title VII impacted change in correctional settings by banning discriminatory hiring practices. It is important to note that feminist theories may also provide additional explanations for the presence or absence of gender differences in perceptions of the promotional process (for a review, see Belknap 2014; Chesney-Lind and Faith 2001; Morash 2006). For example, some feminist theorists (see Connell 1995; West and Fenstermaker 1995) define “gender” not as a static identity, but in terms of how an individual interacts with others that either parallel or refute common perceptions of how males and females “should act” based on traditional sex-roles. When stereotypes of men in traditional occupational roles (i.e., correctional staff) correspond to being aggressive and punishment-orientated, hegemonic masculinity is said to occur (Morash & Haarr, 2012). Emphasized femininity occurs when females associate with traditional sex-role expectations (e.g., nurturing, fragile, and passive) (West & Zimmerman, 2009). Tying these concepts together, Ridgeway (2007) argued based on a feminist viewpoint that both the workplace organization and the individual’s role in the workplace influences how they will act in an occupational setting. An individual’s workplace identity is the primary mechanism that corresponds to how they interact with others, while their background identity (i.e., gender) is the secondary mechanism. While Ridgeway’s (2007) conceptualization has been applied to gender differences in the field of policing, it could also be applied in a correctional setting concerning the identities of male and female staff. On the one hand, gender differences in perceptions of the promotional process may appear if hegemonic masculinity and emphasized femininity occur in the work environment. On the other hand, based on Ridgeway’s (2007) identity model, male and female correctional staff may have similar views and perceptions regarding promotional opportunities because their workplace identity includes the same occupational role (i.e. correctional officers).
Another consideration relevant to the current study is the concept of organizational culture. Schein (2004) contends that culture is an endemic part of the functioning of any group and develops around a set of shared values and beliefs that are both espoused (i.e., articulated in a public manner) and communicated more subtly as group norms. These values and norms convey messages that shape the beliefs and attitudes of the members of the workplace with regard to how they are to act or behave. In their examination of police and correctional officer occupational culture, Farkas and Manning (1997) identified three cohesive segments of correctional agencies (e.g., lower participants, middle management, top command) and noted how the bureaucratic and paramilitary style functioning of this chain of command relays key information about core institution values and norms that ultimately shape the attitudes and behavior of staff. Schein (2004) also discusses the development of subcultures within institutions. Subcultures are thought to form because different people are hired for different tasks, thus creating solidarity among likeminded workers. Moreover, isolation of some groups from the dominant culture (e.g., middle management or top command in correctional settings) can lead to the creation of subcultures that share values and espouse beliefs that are perceptibly different from the mainstream. Indeed the existence of various types of prison officer subcultures has been documented by researchers (e.g., Klofas 1984; Klofas and Toch 1982; Lombardo 1985) and the bureaucratic nature of criminal justice agencies can certainly lead to feelings of isolation and solidarity among employees. It is conceivable, then, that the influence of organizational culture in correctional settings may offer divergent explanations for perceptions of gender-based discrimination. For instance, if discriminatory attitudes against females are harbored by the top command or middle management, it is possible that such views are espoused or become group norms that are then transmitted through the chain of command and thus become entrenched in the views of the agency as a collective. Conversely, if officer subcultures develop and such groups espouse discriminatory attitudes, the consensus of the workplace may also be affected. A review of the scant literature on the subject offers support for both perspectives. As noted in some of the earliest literature on the introduction of women in to corrections, jail and prison administrators were seen as espousing values that females were inferior and unfit for the job (Bernat and Zupan 1989; Crouch 1985; Jurik 1985; Kissel and Katsampes 1980; Owen 1985; Withrow 1992; Zimmer 1986, 1987). Individual officers and informal groups communicated such beliefs as well (Jurik 1985; Hemmens et al. 2002; Owen 1985; Pogrebin and Poole 1998). If anything has changed at all, we might expect that top command is more supportive of the hiring and promotion of female staff, if for no reason other than for required compliance with affirmative action laws (Camp et al. 1997; Griffin et al. 2005; Lawrence and Marian 1998).
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Dobrin, A., Smith, J.J., Peck, J.H. et al. Perceptions of Gender Bias in the Promotional Process of a Detention Staff. Am J Crim Just 41, 522–538 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-015-9312-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-015-9312-8