Appraisal of Impermissible Behaviour of Correctional Officers on the Objectives of the Offender Rehabilitation Programmes in Prisons

Ernest Ramokone Lekalakala ORCID iD, Kholofelo Annah Rakubu ORCID iD & Puleng Hendrick Motlalekgosi ORCID iD

Issue: Vol.6 No.14 Article 27 pp.3770 – 3779
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561427 | Published online 30th December, 2025
© 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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The effectiveness of Offender Rehabilitation Programmes (ORPs) within South African Correctional Facilities depends on the professional conduct of correctional officers. Impermissible behaviours, including excessive use of force, corruption, neglect of duty, and abuse of authority, compromise the rehabilitative mandate of the penitentiary system and undermine offender reintegration efforts. This study systematically examines the nature and extent of such misconduct and its implications for rehabilitation outcomes. Using a systematic literature review guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework, relevant peer-reviewed articles, government reports, policy documents, and official publications published in the past decade were critically reviewed. Inclusion criteria prioritised relevance, methodological rigour, and contextual applicability to South African correctional settings. The thematic synthesis of the findings reveals a persistent disjuncture between the stated objectives of ORPs and inmates’ lived experiences, attributable mainly to correctional officer misconduct. Documented practices, including physical and psychological abuse, bribery, and the perpetuation of hostile institutional environments, emerge as systemic impediments to inmate engagement, programme credibility, and long-term rehabilitative outcomes. The study concludes that impermissible conduct among correctional officers constitutes a significant barrier to achieving rehabilitation objectives in correctional settings. Addressing this challenge requires implementing stringent accountability mechanisms, continuous professional ethics training, and enhanced supervision. By situating the conduct of correctional officers at the centre of rehabilitation discourse, this study contributes to the scholarly literature on correctional governance in South Africa. It underscores the alignment of institutional practices with the transformative goals of offender rehabilitation.

Keywords: Offender Rehabilitation, Correctional Officers, Misconduct, South African Prisons, Systematic Literature Review, Institutional Corruption, Rehabilitative Outcomes.

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Dr. Ernest Ramokone Lekalakala is a Lecturer in Law, Safety and Security Management at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), based in Pretoria, South Africa. He holds a PhD in Criminal Justice from the University of South Africa (UNISA), where his research focused on a penological analysis of the Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons. His scholarly interests include correctional services administration, penology, recidivism, and forensic investigations. He has extensive experience in higher education, specializing in curriculum development, academic administration, and research dissemination. He also serves as Vice-Chairperson of the Correctional Supervision and Parole Board in the Department of Correctional Services, leveraging his expertise in rehabilitation, policy formulation, and criminal justice systems. His professional background spans multiple roles in the public and private sectors, including security management and corrections. He is a dedicated educator and researcher who actively contributes to academic and community initiatives while researching safety and security management, rehabilitation, and criminal justice reform.

Prof. Kholofelo Annah Rakubu is attached to Tshwane University of Technology in the Department of Law, Safety and Security Management as Head of Department and Faculty Research Ethics Chairperson.  With 20 years of teaching experience at an institution of higher learning, Prof Rakubu is also a criminologist who is a member of CRIMSA, served as Secretary of the Criminological Society of Africa (CRIMSA 2018-2020), and further served as a board member of CRIMSA (2021-2023). Prof Rakubu was an editorial board member for both Acta Criminologica: African Journal of Criminology and Victimology and the Southern African Journal of Security. Since 2015, Prof Rakubu has served as a reviewer and convener for Doctoral Applications and training at the National Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences (NIHSS). Published book chapters and further published on local government and crime, substance abuse, organised crime, domestic violence, crime prevention, community policing, victimology, municipal safety, school safety, cybercrime, vigilantism, and policy analysis.

Dr. Puleng Hendrick Motlalekgosi is a Programme Co-ordinator and a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities at Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), South Africa, with 25 years of teaching experience. He holds a Ph.D. in Penology from the University of South Africa. He is a member of the Departmental Committee for Research and Innovation and the Faculty Committee for Teaching and Learning. He is also a member of the Criminological Society of Africa. In 2012, he won the Lecturer of the Year award in the Faculty of Humanities at TUT. This was followed by the Lecturer of the Year award: second runner-up in 2018. He has published more than ten research articles in peer-reviewed, accredited journals. He has delivered several papers at national and international conferences. He has successfully supervised and co-supervised more than 10 master’s students and is currently supervising five doctoral and three master’s students. His research interests span criminal justice, including correctional services and policing. In the correctional services, his interests include inter alia prisoners’ rights, prison security, parole management, and prison unit management. In the policing sector, his interests include inter alia the use of technology in policing and community policing.

 

Lekalakala, Ernest Ramokone, Kholofelo Annah Rakubu & Puleng Hendrick Motlalekgosi.“ Appraisal of Impermissible Behaviour of Correctional Officers on the Objectives of the Offender Rehabilitation Programmes in Prisons.” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 6, no. 14 (2025): 3770 – 3779, https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561427

© 2025 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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