Organizational Control Structures in Five Correctional Institutions

In institutions for delinquents pursuit of custodial or treatment goals leads to differences in organizational control structures. In a study of five institutions it was found that treatment institutions as compared to custodial institutions had more complex departmental structures requiring a greater sharing of executive power. Moreover, differences in goals were associated with differences in this balance of power among groups; emphasis on treatment leads to a more powerful social service staff, relative to cottage parents and teachers. Among treatment institutions, those that focus on milieu treatment are likely to have a different control structure from those that focus on individual treatment.