Federal correctional officers (COs) face a compelling amount of professional stress and rigid professional expectations. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP), in an effort to improve employee wellness, has instituted a number of policies and programs addressing gender, sexual harassment, the treatment of inmates, and the role of the BOP in rehabilitation efforts. As a result, COs are navigating how they see themselves and their role within the BOP. Using interviews with 26 federal COs, we use the communication theory of identity (CTI) to explore how correctional workers are communicatively managing their professional identities as the BOP's policies shift. Officers described idealized professional identities in oppositional gendered terms (e.g., masculinity is privileged; femininity derided). Female-identifying officers described being unable to meet professional ideals, and some male-identifying officers struggled enacting their masculinity. However, COs described managing gaps between their personal and professional identities in ways that elucidated connections, rather than separation, between officers. We provide theoretical and practical implications from participant voices, including the use of CTI to better understand identity work processes in workplace contexts.

中文翻译：

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监狱就是力量：联邦惩教人员、性别和职业认同工作

联邦惩教人员 (CO) 面临着巨大的职业压力和严格的职业期望。监狱局 (BOP) 为改善员工健康，制定了多项政策和计划，以解决性别、性骚扰、囚犯待遇以及 BOP 在康复工作中的作用。因此，CO 正在探索他们如何看待自己以及他们在 BOP 中的角色。通过对 26 位联邦 CO 的采访，我们使用身份沟通理论 (CTI) 来探索随着 BOP 政策的转变，惩教工作者如何通过沟通管理他们的职业身份。官员用对立的性别术语描述了理想化的职业身份（例如，男性气质是特权；女性气质被嘲笑）。女性身份官员描述无法满足职业理想，一些男性身份官员努力表现出他们的男子气概。然而，CO 描述了管理他们的个人身份和职业身份之间的差距的方式，这些方式阐明了军官之间的联系，而不是分离。我们从参与者的声音中提供理论和实践意义，包括使用 CTI 来更好地理解工作场所环境中的身份工作流程。