Date of Conferral
7-7-2026
Date of Award
July 2026
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Criminal Justice
Advisor
Marisa Bryant
Abstract
Incarcerated individuals remain inconsistently engaged in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery, creating both an operational gap and an ethical challenge regarding labor equity, safety, voluntariness, and human dignity. Guided by RBT and EMT, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how incarcerated individuals are utilized in emergency management and to examine stakeholder perceptions of the operational, ethical, and policy implications of inmate labor programs. The research questions examined current utilization patterns, stakeholder-perceived benefits and drawbacks, and ethical concerns influencing participation decisions. Data were collected through semi structured interviews with purposefully sampled emergency management professionals, policymakers, and correctional officers via Zoom, and analyzed using thematic analysis with NVivo software and triangulation. Findings revealed that incarcerated individuals perform substantial roles in wildfire suppression and disaster recovery, and are perceived as valuable supplemental resources offering rehabilitation and workforce development opportunities. Significant ethical tensions were identified involving compensation inequities, voluntariness, safety standards, and institutional accountability. The study concluded that operational effectiveness and ethical accountability are interdependent within inmate labor programs. The findings have implications for positive social change by informing ethical emergency management policies that promote equitable labor practices, rehabilitation, and more resilient communities.
Recommended Citation
Valiance, Boris Eugene, "Examining Inmate Labor in Emergency Management: Contributions, Challenges, and Ethical Considerations" (2026). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 20358.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/20358
