Belonging to a racial minority, being a correctional officer

Abstract

This text forms part of a round table discussion with James B. Jacobs, author of the classic study on the sociology of prisons Stateville: The Penitentiary in Mass Society, and examines the validity of his work 40 years later. The aim of this commentary is to explore if belonging to an ethnic minority affects the job performance and punitive attitudes of these correctional staff toward inmates and if it is related to job stress. The discrimination experienced by minority correctional staff in Stateville and their incorporation into this penal institution are discussed. Then it is determined that this group shows more favorable attitudes towards the rehabilitation of the prisoners. The results regarding the relationship between ethnicity and job stress are inconclusive, with institutional factors found to be more important than individual ones.