Perceived Procedural Justice Enhances Correctional Officers’ Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Correlational and Causal Evidence From Israel

Abstract

Procedural justice refers to unbiased, caring, respectful, and participative treatment by decision makers. It positively associates with employees’ citizenship behavior, an expression of motivation and commitment that consists of voluntary helpful acts toward the organization or fellow employees. In view of scarce research on these variables in correctional facilities, we conducted two studies among Israeli correctional officers. In a survey (N = 336), procedural justice by the commander moderately associated with organization- and individual-targeted citizenship behavior. In addition, commander procedural justice predicted perceiving organization procedural justice, which in turn strongly associated with organization-targeted citizenship. In an experiment (N = 311), commander procedural justice enhanced organization- but not individual-targeted citizenship behavior. These studies provide new statistical and causal evidence for procedural justice effects on correctional officers, which can inform prison administrations’ practices. They also generalize justice effects to the Israeli prison culture and provide knowledge on Israeli officers, hitherto notably understudied.