Date of Conferral

10-23-2026

Date of Award

October 2026

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Richard Thompson

Abstract

Correctional officers experience high rates of burnout, compassion fatigue, and personnel turnover in U.S. correctional settings. Correctional facility leaders need to understand these concerns as critical indicators of employee retention, workforce stability, and correctional facilities' ability to maintain safe and effective operations. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore correctional officers’ motivation and positive experiences, focusing on factors that influence their decision to remain in their roles despite workplace challenges in state-run correctional facilities in the U.S. Southwest. Stamm’s professional quality of life framework, which locates compassion satisfaction across the work, client, and personal environments, guided this study. The participants comprised 13 correctional officers in the U.S. Southwest. Data were collected using semistructured interviews. Five themes and two subthemes emerged from the reflexive thematic analysis: (a) witnessing the shift, (b) becoming more than I was, (c) we have each other's backs, (d) not about authority, and (e) purpose beyond the badge. The subthemes were the accumulation of small wins and faith and values as a foundation. The themes highlighted meaningful inmate relationships, personal growth, peer support, respect-based engagement, and purpose, which sustain correctional officers' commitment to the profession. Correctional officers’ decisions to stay were shaped not only by compensation and structure but also by meaning. The implications for sustainable, positive social impact include the potential for correctional facility leaders to develop strengths-based retention strategies that foster correctional officers’ sense of purpose, improve workforce stability, and support safer, more humane correctional environments.

Download

Share

 
COinS