The relationship between correctional officers' personality and job satisfaction, performance, and turnover

This study examined correctional officers' personality and job satisfaction, performance, and turnover. Two hundred newly hired correctional officers from 9 facilities across a Midwestern state were administered the 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF). They were contacted 3 to 5 months after their date of hire and then again 6 to 8 months after their date of hire to complete the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ). At that time employment status and performance evaluations were also collected. A discriminant function analysis was used to identify which of the five global factors from the 16PF discriminated between correctional officers who stayed, those who voluntarily quit, and those who were dismissed at the 3-month evaluation and at the 6-month evaluation. The 16PF global factors did not differentiate among the three employment status groups at 3 months or 6 months. A canonical correlation was performed to determine the relationship between the 5 global factors of the 16PF and the 2 job satisfaction factors at 3 months and at 6 months. No significant relationship was found; therefore, personality variables were not related to job satisfaction at 3 months or 6 months. A canonical correlation was used to determine the relationship between the 5 global factors of the 16PF and the 7 general ratings of performance at 3 months and 6 months. There was not a relationship between personality variables and job performance ratings at 3 months, but a relationship existed between personality and job performance at 6 months.