Eric D. Poole

Self-reported and observed rule-breaking in prison: A look at disciplinary response

Research on rule-breaking and disciplinary response in correctional institutions usually examines the official record of charges and penalties. This study uses inmate self-reports of rule violations and guard self-reports of observed inmate rule violations as well as the official records. Data come from the Federal Correctional Institution at Fort Worth, Texas, which is distinctive in having large proportions of both sexes constituting its inmate population. Major findings include: (1) Inmates are much more extensively involved in rule-breaking than is usually presumed from official institutional records; (2) Guards claim to observe nearly the same number of violations admitted by inmates; (3) Guards report very few of the violations that they observe; (4) These findings have little relationship to sex or race of inmates. The institutions desire for stable control seems to make guards reluctant to report fully the infractions of inmates for whose conduct they are held responsible; this gives inmates cons...

HUMOR IN THE BRIEFING ROOM A Study of the Strategic Uses of Humor Among Police

This article explores the strategic uses of humor in the police organization. Based upon a year-long ethnographic study of one suburban police department, we examine four types of humor characteristics of the work relations among patrol officers: jocular aggression, audience degradation, diffusion of danger/tragedy, and normative neutralization. Humor allows for a wide range of creative expressions by which specific ideas, attitudes, and behaviors may be tested. Through humor, patrol officers relate and interpret work experiences to reinforce their own perspective of policing. Institutionalized humorous communication also contributes to the maintenance of organizational relationships.

Police and tragic events: The management of emotions

The expression of personal feelings is severely limited within the police culture. Professional conduct norms dictate that officers must remain calm and in control, constantly guarding their emotions. This article explores the emotion-management strategies employed by police officers. Based on interview data obtained from a sample of patrol officers working in four urban departments, the study examined how police officers account for their handling of emotions in their work experiences involving tragic events. Because of the norm to refrain from displays of emotions, officers find few opportunities to deal directly with the pent-up feelings engendered by tragic events; consequently, the aftermaths of tragedies are rarely discussed in terms of the impact on the officers involved. The police find themselves unable to reveal their feelings to fellow officers, much less discuss them, for fear of being viewed as inadequate—as not having what it takes to be a solid, dependable police officer. As a result, interpersonal barriers against seeking common solutions to problems of “emotion work” are created and maintained.

Measurement of police cynicism: A factor scaling approach

Abstract Niederhoffers police cynicism index is assessed in an attempt to identify and refine specific dimensions of police cynicism. Through a principal component factor analysis, a three-factor structure was identified. Three factor scales were developed, and their internal consistency, reliability, and predictive validity were compared with those of the original index. Overall, although less reliable, the factor scales proved to be more powerful predictors of salient criterion variables and to offer greater conceptual clarity in studying the effects of police cynicism.

The Sexualized Work Environment: A Look at Women Jail Officers:

This article examines the nature of a sexualized work environment and adjustment strategies of female deputy sheriffs working in four county jails and three local adult detention centers. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 108 women deputies. The findings suggest that women experience various problems stemming from sexism and sexual harassment by their male coworkers. The impact of and response to these work problems are explored.

Examining the Impact of Professionalism on Cynicism, Role Conflict, and Work Alienation among Prison Guards:

The corrections literature is replete with themes of organizational conflict. Recent efforts to combat such conflict have been directed toward the professionalization of the custodial staff. This paper assesses the nature and extent of the linkage between professionalization on the one hand and cynicism, role conflict, and work alienation on the other. Data for the project came from the responses of 179 prison guards working in two custody-oriented correctional institutions. Data were analyzed by means of multivariate regression techniques. Generally, we found that professionalism does reduce each of the criterion variables, but in different ways. The paper concludes by relating the research findings to those reported elsewhere.

Deinstitutionalization and Increased Arrest Rates among the Mentally Disordered

Policies of deinstitutionalization, together with a general tightening of civil commitment laws and inadequate funding for community-based programs, have resulted in an increase of mentally ill people on the streets. Growing numbers of former mental patients and individuals whose bizarre behavior might have landed them in a state hospital bed a few years ago are now being arrested and ending up in jail. Four key areas––deinstitutionalization, police decision making, decline of mental health programs, and criminal histories of mental patients—are examined with respect to the shifting of mentally disordered persons from the mental health system to the criminal justice system.

Culture Conflict And Crime In The Korean-American Community

Like other immigrant groups, Korean-American offenders victimize their own people. These criminals have operated with near impunity since their victims have been afraid to report crimes to the police. Due to the lack of knowledge of American criminal law and the operations of the justice system in general, Korean immigrants attempt to avoid those institutions in their new homeland that they feared in Korea. The purpose of the present paper is to examine various cultural aspects of serious interpersonal violence among Korean immigrants that lead to official police response. Interpersonal violence seems to be a method of conflict resolution relied upon by Koreans in disputes involving honor. A propensity to punish someone physically who has dishonored another in the form of an insult, cheating, disrespect, or failure to keep ones word—seems to b an acceptable method for redeeming or restoring the honor of the wronged parties. Such manifestations of violence are expressions of power, with physical force often taken to an extreme. The purpose is not just to right a wrong or administer just deserts; it must also serve to demonstrate control.

Work Relations and Cynicism Among Prison Guards

While researchers have recently focused their attention on cynicism as a role characteristic of prison guards, they have tended to view cynicism as a consequence of the organization of prison work and have not examined the attitude as the outcome of interaction with others in the institution. The present research explores the feasibility of this line of explanation. Data for the project were derived from questionnaire responses of 144 guards working in a large-state, maximum-security institution in the midwest. In addition to the questionnaire data, formal interviews were also conducted with a stratified sample of the institutions guards. While numerous findings emerged from the study, the most general showed that as a prison guards work relations with inmates, fellow officers, and administrators deteriorate, his level of cynicism increases. From this, we conclude the article with a discussion of the theoretical significance and practical importance of all findings presented.

Changing the Guard in American Cities: A Current Empirical Assessment of Integration in Twenty Municipal Police Departments

This paper provides a comparative empirical examination of integration in twenty major city police agencies over a 14-year time period. The data indicate that in these twenty agencies, obvious and measurable progress toward affirmative action goals has been realized. Nonetheless, nonwhites as agroup are still underrepresented by about 50o%, Hacks are underrepresented about 67%, and females are underrepresented by about 85%.