Predicting Health and Wellness Outcomes for Probation and Parole Officers: An Exploratory Study

• Author: Andrew S. Denney,Angie Schwendau,Allen Copenhaver
• DOI: 10.1177/0887403419870850
• Published date: 01 May 2020
• Date: 01 May 2020
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0887403419870850

Criminal Justice Policy Review

2020, Vol. 31(4) 573 –591

© The Author(s) 2019

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DOI: 10.1177/0887403419870850

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Article

Predicting Health and

Wellness Outcomes

for Probation and

Parole Officers: An

Exploratory Study

Andrew S. Denney1, Allen Copenhaver2,

and Angie Schwendau2

Abstract

Probation and parole research in the late 1980s and early 1990s explored the

negative health and wellness effects that officers may experience. However, little

current research exists on health and wellness outcomes for probation and parole

officers. Furthermore, little research has been conducted on the factors that may

predict health and wellness for probation and parole officers. This study provides

survey results of 342 probation and parole officers working for one probation and

parole department in a southern U.S. state. Binary logistic regression results reveal

officer age and tobacco use are significant predictors of officer injury. Moreover,

sex, alcohol use, fast food consumption, sleep, and feeling in control of one’s job are

significant predictors of self-reported officer depression. Policy implications for the

above-mentioned findings and future directions for research are also discussed.

Keywords

correctional staff, community corrections, work environment

Introduction

The overall health and wellness of criminal justice practitioners has been the focus of

scholars for approximately 30 years (Cullen, Link, Wolfe, & Frank, 1985; Lambert &

Paoline, 2008; Stevens, 2008). Research has identified substantial role issues and

1Loyola University New Orleans, LA, USA

2Lindsey Wilson College, Columbia, KY, USA

Corresponding Author:

Andrew S. Denney, Loyola University New Orleans, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA.

Email: asdenney@loyno.edu

870850CJPXXX10.1177/0887403419870850Criminal Justice Policy ReviewDenney et al.

research-article2019

574 Criminal Justice Policy Review 31(4)

conflicts inherent within key criminal justice actor’s positions in the duties required of

their job. For example, the roles of police officer and correctional officer, respectively,

have shown to be rife with issues that impact both their professional and personal

lives. Most notably, these roles have been shown to suffer from substantial stress,

which can lead to poor health, high divorce rates, job burnout, and other significant

professional and personal issues (McCoy & Aamodt, 2010; Mumford, Taylor, & Kubu,

2015). These role issues ultimately tend to impact general recruitment and retention of

these positions, placing further burdens upon criminal justice agencies and administra-

tors in attempting to recruit and retain personnel (McCarty, Zhao, & Garland, 2007).

Despite the strong focus on the overall health and wellness of important criminal

justice positions, community correctional officers have seldom been the focus of such

research. Specifically, examination into important health habits of community correc-

tional officers, such as diets, tobacco/alcohol use, exercise, and sleep have been largely

neglected. Charged with supervising nearly 4,500,000 of the 6,613,500 individuals

believed to be under some form of correctional supervision currently in the United

States (Kaeble & Cowhig, 2018), high caseloads (DeMichele & Payne, 2007), and the

supervision of a variety of special offender populations (e.g., sex offenders, mentally

ill, etc.), community correctional officers have been found to face many of the same

issues as law enforcement and correctional officers (Slate, Wells, & Johnson, 2003).

Although recent statistics suggest a slight decrease in the number of individuals under

community supervision, more than 90,000 estimated officers are still responsible for

supervising nearly 70% of the current correctional population in the United States

(American Probation and Parole Association, n.d.; Kaeble, 2018). It is imperative that

continued research examine the overall health/wellness of these practitioners.

The current study attempts to ascertain what individual qualities might be differen-

tial predictors for work-related and health/wellness issues suffered by probation/parole

officers. Specifically, the present study has two primary goals. First, what demo-

graphic, physical, substance use, health, and job characteristics lead to varying levels

of likelihood in the receipt of an injury while on the job? Second, what demographic,

physical, substance use, health, and job characteristic factors lead to the likelihood of

experiencing self-reported depression? Policy implications and future directions for

research will also be discussed.

Literature Review

Substantial research has been conducted on the overall health and wellness of law

enforcement officers and correctional officers. However, fewer studies have focused

on the health/wellness of probation/parole officers. Most prior research related to

community correctional officer well-being has been on workplace injuries.

Injuries

Injuries related to one’s position in a law enforcement setting have been the subject of

research for decades. In some situations, law enforcement officers succumb to fatal

occupational injuries while on duty. For example, Tiesman, Hendricks, Bell, and