Date of Completion

Spring 4-28-2020

Thesis Advisor(s)

Alicia Dugan; Jennifer Cavallari

Honors Major

Allied Health Sciences

Disciplines

Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene | Public Health | Women's Health

Abstract

In recent years women’s participation in the American workforce has risen dramatically, while they still maintain the majority of the workload at home and in family life. Despite this increase in employment, women’s occupational health has been consistently underresearched and virtually no research has been conducted on female correctional workers. In this study we utilized a cross-sectional survey administered to 143 participants, both male and female, who work as correctional supervisors at the Connecticut Department of Correction. Participants responded to questions collecting information about their demographics, wellbeing, work, and home demands. Data analysis indicated that women, compared to men, did have poorer wellbeing alongside greater work and home demands in certain areas, proving partial support for the study’s hypotheses. However, the hypotheses were not fully supported as statistically significant differences in gender were not found among the majority of outcome variables. Further research into gender differences in the correctional supervisor workforce is needed to fully understand how gender affects the health and wellbeing of these workers.

Share

COinS