Care, custody, control, and the preservation of life: the complexity of correctional officer work

Abstract

ABSTRACT Correctional officers are tasked with and committed to preserving life, yet deaths do occur in custody. Moreover, it is said deaths that receive public attention and media coverage. In the current article, we examine the complexities around the preservation of life as experienced during correctional work. We focus on the discrepancies between public and media interpretations of correctional work and the occupational experiences of correctional officers, including the relationships that develop between staff and prisoners. Drawing from semi-structured interviews with 43 Canadian correctional officers with experience working in provincial or territorial prisons, we thematically analyze their narratives of responding to prisoner death by suicide, either attempted, completed, or both, as well as self-harming behaviours. Results highlight the discrepancies between the role and responsibilities of correctional officers versus how the public perceives their occupational work. We evidence that most staff do care about those in custody, thus balancing preservation of life, care, custody, and control, while keeping themselves, their colleagues, and the public safe creates a complex space for officers.