Measuring Organizational Climate in Prisons

To date, literature examining the organizational context in corrections focuses primarily on the impact of organizational culture on prison violence. The operationalization of organizational climate has received limited attention in the empirical literature. Organizational climate refers to the attributes of the institution (e.g., resources, leadership, management) rather than focusing solely on the shared values and beliefs among correctional staff. Although organizational climate can advance our understanding of factors conducive to institutional misconduct, staff stress, and the like, more studies are warranted concerning the measurement of this construct. Using a confirmatory factor analysis, this study supplements the literature by examining the specific factors that tap into the latent construct of organizational climate. The benefits of understanding organizational climate are discussed from both a measurement and policy standpoint.