Prison Officer Self-Legitimacy and Support for Rehabilitation in Ghana

Legitimacy remains a principal issue for prison researchers and managers. However, prison legitimacy literature tends to focus on views held by individuals in custody. Research on prison officer Self-Legitimacy—that is, the prison officers’ belief that the authority vested in them is morally right—remains scanty. Drawing on data from a survey of 1,062 prison officers in Ghana, this study examined both the correlates of prison officer Self-Legitimacy and the links between Self-Legitimacy and Support for Rehabilitation of individuals in custody. The results of multivariate analyses showed that having good Relations with Colleagues and being treated fairly by supervisors enhanced prison officers’ Self-Legitimacy. In turn, Self-Legitimacy was found to increase officers’ Support for Rehabilitation. Finally, perceived Fair Treatment by Supervisors and positive Relations with Individuals in Custody were associated with increased Support for Rehabilitation. The implications of these findings are discussed.