Examining the effects of job burnout and work-family conflict on correctional officer turnover intent

Voluntary correctional officer turnover can have devastating effects. Turnover intent is usually the last stage before actual voluntary turnover. Building upon past research, the current study examined the effects of work-family conflict and job burnout on the turnover intent of officers, while testing to see if these effects were moderated by job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Data came from a survey of 664 officers at two Southwestern state prisons and were analyzed using ordinary least squares regression. The time-based and strain-based dimensions of work-family conflict were measured, as were the burnout dimensions of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. The measures of work-family conflict and job burnout were significant predictors of turnover intent. When job satisfaction and organizational commitment were added to the model job burnout was no longer significant, but both measures of work-family conflict were. Both satisfaction and commitment had significant negative associations and were the best predictors of correctional officer turnover intent. The results indicate that efforts are needed to raise satisfaction and commitment among officers and to lower time-based and strain-based conflict to reduce turnover intent. Turnover in correctional services is an international issue and the findings and policy implications of this study are internationally applicable.