ABSTRACT
Literature on the training of prison custody personnel has tended to focus on the adjustment of the person into the role of correctional officer (Crawley, 2004). Like police and the military, training involves the initiation into an organization where stress and concern about security and safety necessitates a level of trust in one’s fellow officers as well as a heightened awareness of one’s surroundings. The importance of the mission and objective of the organization is perhaps secondary to the importance of understanding security and the potential danger inherent in the job. If this mission or objective is unclear – for example, where there is debate about whether the role of the prison is one of deterrence through punishment by a denial of liberty, and/or holding the offender to account (in whatever form that may take) and/or to provide opportunities for behaviour change – then there is a risk that these ideals may get lost in the security and safety aspect of the job.
