Research Note: The Association of Procedural and Distributive Justice With Emotional Exhaustion Burnout Among Prison Officers in Nigeria

Abstract

Prison officers have a demanding job and are at risk of burnout. The literature indicates that workplace variables are related to burnout, but there are gaps in the literature that need to be addressed, including the need for additional research on the association of organizational justice with officer burnout. Organizational justice theory holds that employees expect to be treated fairly by their organizations and that psychological strain occurs if they are not, and this strain increases the chances of job burnout. The current study examined how distributive and procedural justice views, which are dimensions of organizational justice, were related to the emotional exhaustion burnout of Nigerian prison officers. Data were collected from 120 officers stationed at medium-security prison in southeast Nigeria. Both procedural justice and distributive justice were significantly associated with lower emotional exhaustion burnout. The current findings support the postulation that workplace fairness is associated with lower levels of job burnout.