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1. I really enjoyed Ms. Badgett’s report on working in the Joliet Juvenile Center. She truly seems to have a passion for this population and spoke about them with compassion and unconditional positive regard. Two considerations for professional counselors that she pointed out were, 1. confidentiality is a bit different in this setting, and 2. (and this really broke my heart) that the kids are usually receptive to therapy, ” because someone is finally listening to what they have to say”. This population can not only benefit from our services, but also wants our services. Ms. Badgett did make a point of mentioning boundaries a couple times, so I’d imagine this is also a very important consideration.

2. The adult population correctional facilities are very unique (and dangerous) settings. According to the article Correctional Psychologist Burnout, Job Satisfaction, and Life Satisfaction, “ CR psychologists do experience significantly more occupational burnout” and “reported significantly less job satisfaction” (Senter, et al 2010). The article also mentioned Master control and extra security measures such as wearable panic buttons and walkie talkies. Given these special circumstances, I think a professional counselor in this setting would need to posses a very strong, calm, demeanor. They would also need to work well under pressure and in crisis, and practice a tremendous amount of self care.

3. Again, to reiterate a point made by Ms. Badgett, a counselor in correctional facilities must be able to put all of their social and moral judgments aside and regard this population with unconditional positive regard. Certain offenders may never be pillars of character in their communities, but they can learn to control their impulses, gain empathy for their victims, and improve overall. If they feel they are being judged and looked down upon, chances are they will see no point in working with that professional counselor. Having said that, I honestly don’t know how I would handle working with a convicted pedophile. As much as I truly believe that people can grow and change,I think that requires a strong therapeutic alliance. I’m not sure how well I would be able to fake positive regard for certain offenses, much less actually achieve it.