Prison Mentality
LarryC
1,267 Posts
Rather than hijack Bragaw's thread, I thought I would start another one.
I have had the experience through the years of working with several ex-cons. My work experience is mainly in Wisconsin and Minnesota where you cannot make hiring decisions based solely on the fact that an applicant has been convicted somewhere along the line.
I have found a common theme among ex-cons and it rears its ugly head usually around disciplinary issues. I have come to predict and expect that an ex-con, when faced with discipline, will say, "Everyone's out to get me." I have run into this numerous times and I call it a "prison mentality". I have tried to explain to the employee that, while in prison, "yes, people probably were out to get you. But this is a workplace and you'll have to realize that this is not prison and somehow adjust yourself and your thinking accordingly." In reality I have spent quite a bit of time with these employees in trying to counsel them on ridding themselves of this "demon".
Has anyone else ever run into this, what I call, "prison mentality"? And how did you deal with it?
I have had the experience through the years of working with several ex-cons. My work experience is mainly in Wisconsin and Minnesota where you cannot make hiring decisions based solely on the fact that an applicant has been convicted somewhere along the line.
I have found a common theme among ex-cons and it rears its ugly head usually around disciplinary issues. I have come to predict and expect that an ex-con, when faced with discipline, will say, "Everyone's out to get me." I have run into this numerous times and I call it a "prison mentality". I have tried to explain to the employee that, while in prison, "yes, people probably were out to get you. But this is a workplace and you'll have to realize that this is not prison and somehow adjust yourself and your thinking accordingly." In reality I have spent quite a bit of time with these employees in trying to counsel them on ridding themselves of this "demon".
Has anyone else ever run into this, what I call, "prison mentality"? And how did you deal with it?
Comments
Nae
Larry, what you describe sounds like union mentality. Fortunately I've not had to deal with it much. If I do, I try to deal with it like Nae does.
We had an ex-con working here but I didn't sense that attitude from him. Prison helped him. Prison brought order to his life and he benefitted from it.
Its a fascinating observation though. You might consider contacting someone who helps prisoners adjust to life after prison and see if they have any insight.
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>"Larry, what you describe sounds like union
>mentality. Fortunately I've not had to deal
>with it much. If I do, I try to deal with it
>like Nae does."
This is exactly what I was thinking when I read Larry's account of the Prison Mentality. It is the same type of thing we deal with here when dealing with the union personnel. They seem to think that the evil company is "out to get them". We try to keep everything on a very even keel and I train our supervisors constantly about not doing anything that will even remotely look like favoritism. I do a once a month training that I think has become effective for our supervisors to be able to speak to the ee's about policies and the union contract with confidence. This seems to slow it down for a short time, but any time without the whining is a good time. D.C.