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Correctional Officer Professional Orientation: A Replication of the Klofas-Toch Measure

NCJ Number
108906
Journal
Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 14 Issue: 4 Dated: (1987) Pages: 468-486
Author(s)
J Whitehead; C Linquist; J Klofas
Date Published
1987
Length
486 pages
Annotation
In view of the increasing interest in research on correctional officers, data are presented concerning the validity, reliability, and factor structure of the Klofas-Toch professional orientation inventory of correctional officer attitudes toward inmates.
Abstract
This 17-item instrument was administered to a heterogeneous sample of southern correctional officers and to a heterogeneous sample of probation and parole officers. The same four-factor structure emerged in the correctional officer data as had been reported by Klofas and Toch (1982); however, separate analyses showed differential factor ordering and loading for black and white officers. The factor structure that emerged in the probation officer data differed from the structure found in the correctional officer data. Finally, the professional orientation inventory, while found to be a valid and reliable measure, did not explain much of the variance in correctional officer job burnout. (Publisher abstract)