Community corrections staff are responsible for supervising more than 4 million offenders nationwide; yet, little research exists on understanding their experiences with role-related stressors and job stress. The purpose of this study was to extend the existing community corrections literature by examining the impact of job characteristics, danger-related factors, and role preference on role-related stressors (i.e., role conflict, role ambiguity, and role overload) and job stress, with a focus on determining whether the relationships varied across specific job positions (i.e., probation/parole vs. residential). Results indicated that each type of role-related stressor was differentially affected by job characteristics, danger-related factors, and role preference, and that these relationships also differed by position. Threat of harm was a significant predictor of each type of role-related stressor for probation/parole officers, but only had a significant effect on role overload for residential officers. Furthermore, safety training had significant effects on role ambiguity and role overload for residential officers, but was not a significant predictor of any role stressor for probation/parole officers. Role preference was significant for both positions, but only for the role overload variable. Most surprisingly, the only variable to predict job stress was role overload.
Psychological effects of job characteristics in gender diverse workplaces: From the perspectives of task interdependence and role ambiguity
