Hester Paanakker

management (N=8) consisting of managing directors (the number represents the entire staff of managing directors and deputy directors of each facility) and, (4) policy advisors (N=6) working at “headquarters” at the Ministry of Justice and Security. The two facilities differed in geography and size (north-west and south-east, urban and rural, large and small) and detention phase (detainees awaiting the case on their verdict and convicted detainees), but attended to the same detainee population (adult males) and employed prison officers with identical task descriptions and work conditions. Both facilities were under the same pressure to implement the new program and its policy tools, and to realize drastic employee and budget cuts – with a highly similar impact on prison personnel in terms of staff mobility, uncertain future job prospects, and negativity and frustration among staff. As the analysis produced no significant differences in the outcomes of the two facilities, we do not distinguish between cases when reporting the findings. From the participatory observation a diversified and seemingly representative pool of respondents in terms of age, gender, length of service, and attitude to the job (for instance, pessimistic or optimistic, repressive or emphatic) was arrived at. For instance, among the interviewed prison officers and middle managers (N=41), 33 were male and 8 female, aged between 30 and 65 years with an average age of 44, and had an average of 19 years of prison service (ranging from less than 5 years to over 30 years, with many having worked there their entire employable lives). Managing directors and policy advisors had comparable age ranges, but one third was female, and among policy advisors considerably less years of service in the sector. Although men, and particularly middle-aged men, are overrepresented, this represents prison staff population in the Netherlands accurately, as well as the populations at both facilities. As part of a larger project on public craftsmanship, interviews lasted approximately 1 hour and were recorded and transcribed verbatim (411.954 words). The analysis in this article is of two straight forward questions from the larger interview set: (1) when does a prison officer do their job well and what objectives should prison officers pursue in their daily work, and (2) and, in your opinion, what do middle managers / prison managers / policy advisors judge is good work by prison officers? The first question was put to all respondents. Depending on the respondent, the second question was slightly adapted to make inquiries into the views of the other groups – 102 Chapter 4