Prison is power: Federal correctional officers, gender, and professional identity work

Abstract

AbstractFederal correctional officers (COs) face a compelling amount of professional stress and rigid professional expectations. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP), in an effort to improve employee wellness, has instituted a number of policies and programs addressing gender, sexual harassment, the treatment of inmates, and the role of the BOP in rehabilitation efforts. As a result, COs are navigating how they see themselves and their role within the BOP. Using interviews with 26 federal COs, we use the communication theory of identity (CTI) to explore how correctional workers are communicatively managing their professional identities as the BOP's policies shift. Officers described idealized professional identities in oppositional gendered terms (e.g., masculinity is privileged; femininity derided). Female‐identifying officers described being unable to meet professional ideals, and some male‐identifying officers struggled enacting their masculinity. However, COs described managing gaps between their personal and professional identities in ways that elucidated connections, rather than separation, between officers. We provide theoretical and practical implications from participant voices, including the use of CTI to better understand identity work processes in workplace contexts.