The Economics of “Crossing Over”: Examining the Link between Correctional Officer Pay and Guard–Inmate Boundary Violations

ABSTRACT

This study seeks to ascertain why some correctional officers engage in boundary violations with inmates in spite of the presence of strong organizational cultural norms which discourage familiarity between staff and offenders. Using an alternate version of Blau and Blau’s relative deprivation theory to guide in the interpretation of our analyses, we conclude that poor pay, perceptions of boundary violations by other officers, and lack of family support, the economics, lead some officers to have a lack of pride in their work and profession, thus, triggering their closeness to inmates across the sacrosanct border, resulting in the crossing over.

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance, support, and wonderful hospitality of countless Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) employees in Human Resources and Internal Affairs for making this research possible. The authors also acknowledge the valuable input of staff on local prison units. Finally, we deeply appreciate all the staff in Executive Services for facilitating this research project in countless ways from beginning to end. While the TDCJ approved this study, this does not imply the Department’s endorsement or concurrence with statements or conclusions contained therein.

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Notes on contributors

Robert M. Worley

ROBERT M. WORLEY, is an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas; the Editor of ACJS Today; Associate Editor of Deviant Behavior; and member of the Institute for Legal Studies in Criminal Justice, Sam Houston State University. He has published academic articles in journals, such as Deviant Behavior, Criminal Justice Review, Journal of Criminal Justice Education, Criminal Justice Studies, and Criminal Law Bulletin, among others. Dr. Worley was a correctional officer with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for seven years. His research interests include inmate–guard inappropriate relationships, police and prison officers’ liabilities for the use of tasers and stun guns, computer crime and cyberbullying, and issues related to publication productivity and rankings in criminology and criminal justice.

Vidisha Barua Worley

VIDISHA BARUA WORLEY, Esquire, is an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas; former contributing editor and columnist with the Criminal Law Bulletin (January 2010 to December 2013); founding member of the Institute for Legal Studies in Criminal Justice, Sam Houston State University; and a licensed attorney in India and New York. She was a journalist in India for six years and worked at three national dailies, The Asian Age, Business Standard, and The Financial Express, respectively. She presented a paper on intellectual disability and the death penalty at the Oxford Round Table, Oxford University, England in March 2010. Professor Worley’s research areas include police and prison officers’ liabilities for the use of tasers and stun guns, the death penalty, prison rape, correctional officer deviance, inappropriate relationships between inmates and correctional officers, cyberbullying and sexting, ethical issues in criminal justice, and terrorism. Her published books include Press and Media Law Manual (2002) and Terrorism in India (2006).