Through questionnaires and phone interviews, this study provides a preliminary look at gender differences in reciprocity among correction officers (COs) employed in male prisons. Operationalized as the reported tendency to overlook minor rule infractions, no differences in reciprocity were found between men and women. Neither gender generally reported this practice. However, findings suggest that selective enforcement is the norm and that the facility is a more salient variable than gender. The study concludes that occupational socialization and the demands of the job account for the similarities between genders and suggests directions for further research.
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