Date of Conferral

3-11-2024

Date of Award

March 2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Jessica Hart

Abstract

Correctional officers are tasked with supervising individuals in custody. Their duties are plentiful and include responding to critical incidents, such as inmate suicide. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to explore the experience of correctional officers in the United States who have witnessed inmate suicide. Lazarus and Folkman’s transactional model of stress and coping was used to guide this study. Participants included eight correctional officers within the United States who have witnessed inmate suicide. These participants were selected using purposive and snowball sampling. Virtual, semi-structured, audio recorded interviews were conducted with participants. Data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis to explore the experience of correctional officers who have witnessed inmate suicide. Five themes were identified through data analysis: additional resources for correctional officers who have witnessed inmate suicide need to be made available by correctional agencies, there is a need for social support following the witnessing of an inmate suicide, experience of emotions in witnessing inmate suicide, the “hard truth” about witnessing inmate suicide, and prison culture and operational factors related to the correctional officers' experience of witnessing inmate suicide. The findings from this study add to the literature by exploring the experience of correctional officers who have witnessed inmate suicide. Recommendations for future research include exploring how correctional officers in the United States cope with the experience of witnessing inmate suicide. The findings of this study may also lead to the creation and implementation of additional staff wellness initiatives, a great potential for positive social change.

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