13

the personality of having high agreeableness and high conscientiousness.

According to the same article, as a jail officer, it is their responsibility to

handle challenging people every day, including those who are prone to

violence and angry outbursts. Jail officers must be able to maintain

control in difficult situation. Having an average level of neuroticism

means that jail officers experiences stressors and are able to feel fear,

anxiety, and stress but also having high level of openness suggest that

these jail officers are imaginative and tries to create ways of dealing with

these stressors, which supported by the statement on the article about

jail officers ability to calm under stress, being objective and awareness.

Distinctions of Personality

According to Positive Psychology Program article entitled “The Big

Five Personality Theory: The 5 Factor Model Explained” (2017). It was

indicated that people that has conscientiousness trait were able to

control impulses and act in the social norm. People were able to improve

their ability to comply within their work and be able to have a strategic

and systematic way of thinking. Conscientiousness being the most

perceptible trait of the jail officers, it was a good indication of the

qualities of their personality. It makes the officers more prepared and

mature in managing any situations in their life, making them fit for their

job as defined in table 2. A supporting article from VeryWellMind entitled

“The Big Five Personality Traits: 5 Major Factors of Personality” (2018),

 14

stated that having lease distinct extraversion means that they could work

or perform a task alone when it was necessary and that this does not

necessarily signify that they were introvert. Thus jail officers’ traits of

conscientiousness and extraversion works side by side to balance their

competency at work, as well as communication and being able to adapt

in any kind of environment to letting the officers serve their country

better.

Relationship of Levels of Personality and Levels of Goal-setting

However, a research conducted by Phillips (2016) entitled: “The

Relationship between Personalities Five Factor Traits and Types of

Motivation” showed both openness to experience as one of the predictors

of intention towards goal-directed thoughts, which in could lead to

higher and more goal-s etting in which according LEvlto the goal-setting

theory, individuals should achieve greater outcomes. Overall, individuals

who are high in openness to experience tend to perform better because

they have stronger intentions relating to goal-setting and achievement.

Although, it depicted an incongruent finding towards our study.

Even though jail officers are open to new experiences, they gain comfort

from the predictability of the environment that they are accustomed to

but manifests in different ways. Adhering to set routines and schedules,

they prefer the ‘tried and tested’ familiarity of working situations which
 15

depicts contentment and thus, it does not affect their levels of goal-

setting.

According to a study by Wang (2017) entitled, “Does the Five-factor

Model of Personality Relate to Goal Orientation?” Although the

personality-motivation link has been studied previously, this literature

has largely over-looked goal orientation. Using a field sample, this study

explored the linkages between the five-factor model of personality and

goal orientation. Results indicated that the ‘‘Big Two’’ (Extraversion and

Neuroticism) were important correlates of goal orientation. Specifically,

Extraversion was significantly related to learning goal orientation and

proving goal orientation.

In contrary to the results of the mentioned study, however,

extroverts tend to get bored easily and be excellent at conversations, but

not always be good listeners. Since it’s essential for the jail officers to

find a balance in talking and especially in listening for their occupation,

it doesn’t necessarily mean it affects their satisfaction towards their

work.

People who are categorized as being high in Agreeableness tend to

be accommodating and helpful in the workplace, as they want to please

others. An individual who is agreeable is known for being warm and

cooperative, thus receptive and optimistic when it comes to training. A

 16

person’s level of agreeableness can impact their effectiveness in goal-

setting, organization, motivation and overall job performance.

Contrary to what was found in the article, although the jail officers

still exhibit agreeableness, it didn’t affect their goal-setting for the

probable cause that since they are jail officers, it’s a must that they

should not avoid conflict or leave the decision to their other colleagues

since it is their duty to maintain peace and order in the workplace.

The results of another study entitled: “Goal-setting in Practice: The

Effects of Personality and Perceptions of the Goal-setting Process on job

Satisfaction and Goal Commitment” by Bipp (2015) showed that job

satisfaction is predicted by content and setting-related aspects, whereas

content-related aspects affected goal commitment whereas neuroticism

affected job satisfaction indirectly via the perceptions of goal content.

Even though the jail officers’ level of neuroticism is high, it doesn’t

affect the levels of goal-setting that they have. This may be because of

their commitment to their job. This may affect their level of job

satisfaction regardless of their high level of emotional stability which we

disprove the said relationship using our sample.

Relationship of Personality and Coping Mechanism

According to Lazarus theory about Cognitive-phenomenological

theory of psychological distress, personality may influence style of coping

 17

strategy of an individual. He suggests that our personality influences a

coping process which is appraisal process and consequently, the coping

style we choose. Individuals with optimistic and positive personality are

more likely to appraise a stressful situation more positively and

consequently engage in a pro-active coping strategy. In relation to our

study, Jail officer are also exposed to a stressful situation, we want to

determine if having a specific personality affects their style or way of

coping.

A study conducted in Malayer University about student`s

personality dimension and coping mechanism in relation to stress, it was

stated that an extensive analysis was conducted to assess the kind of

association exist among five personality factors (neuroticism,

extraversion, openness, agreeableness and conscientiousness) and three

coping strategies (problem-focused, positive emotional-focused and

negative emotional focused). Results indicated that neuroticism was

negatively correlated with positive emotional-focused coping style and

was positively correlated with negative emotional-focused coping style. In

relation to our study about jail officers, we aim to know the association

between the two variables, personality and coping mechanism, how it

affect each other and how it was displayed by the jail officers of Pasay

city jail.
 18

Coping Strategies

Problem solving in general was best for it removes the stressors as

it deals with the root of the challenge, it gives long term solutions.

Usually, it is good to use problem solving coping strategies in dealing

with societal and health problems according to McLeod (2015). On the

other hand, it is not always suitable to use problem solving as means of

coping. For example, when someone passes away, problem solving

strategies may not be very suitable for the bereaved. Dealing something

that tragic may require emotion focused coping.

Problem solving will not be effective in a circumstance where it was

beyond reach of the person’s control to eliminate the root of stress. It

works best when the individual can control the source of stress. By

saying so, it was somehow suitable to use problem solving strategies in

dealing with work related problems. Because in general, work-related

problems require professionalism through rational problem-solving

techniques and time management.

Moreover, According to an article by Good Therapy entitled “Coping

Mechanisms” (2015) problem solving involves identifying a problem that

was becoming the cause of stress and then developing and practically

applying into action effective solutions for efficiently managing it. It just

happen that jail officers were inclined to problem solving techniques

 19

especially in means of rationally thinking of the next step that will

improve their current situation due to their problem.

According to the study of Ruiz (2015), the relationship between the

results on emotional stability and on two cognitive coping mechanisms

namely positive thinking and wishful thinking and the outcome of coping

scale were examined in a sample of ninety-nine (99) Spanish

undergraduates. It shows that positive thinking was associated with high

emotional stability and positive outcomes; on the other hand, wishful

thinking was associated with low emotional stability and negative

outcomes.

Moreover, as stated by Newby-Clark (2015), the real cost of wishful

thinking has something to do with being out of touch with reality. It was

not having the mental discipline to see what’s really going on versus

what one would like to happen. People who can set their preferences

aside, and get a good read on what’s actually happening, seems to have

the advantage.

It shows that the jail officers do not rely in wishful thinking when it

comes to coping up with their problems. It was essential that they utilize

problem solving rather than wishful thinking because the problems they

face within the correctional facility requires logical thinking skills in

solving the problem instead of hoping for things to go well without taking

action. Common problems like interpersonal conflict within inmates

require proper intervention by correctional officers to alleviate the scuffle.

 20

Whereas if correctional officers rely on wishful thinking, it would be

ineffective to resolve the conflict.

An article from human stress entitled, “Coping Strategies” said

that coping strategies were different depending on the situation and the

person. So they provided tips of some good strategies such as being

positive by looking at each obstacle we take as a learning experience,

making the choice not to over-react stressors and dealing with them one

at a time, taking an objective view of your stressor,

communicating/connecting with other people because social support is

the key, accepting others and yourself by facing the fact that no one is

perfect and there would be always room for mistakes, build on our

competences by dealing effectively with successes, developing self-

discipline and control, and lastly keep on practicing for a long life of

resilient living in order to exhibit maintenance. They shall be able to find

the coping strategies that work for us and apply these to their daily lives.

This research is focused on having social support to deal with stress as it

tries to provide a guideline for having a more positive outlook in stressful

situations especially for jail officers since they normally deal with a

higher degree of stress than others.

An article entitled, “Stress: Coping Mechanisms (Police)” by what-

when-how (2017) states that adaptive coping strategies are problem-

solving approaches that help law enforcement professionals deal directly

with the stressful situation by seeking and implementing solutions. The

 21

active-cognitive coping category includes trying to interpret the meaning

of the event, logical analysis, and mental preparation. Problem-focused

coping involves the practical aspects of seeking information and support,

taking action, and identifying alternative rewards. These are adaptive

strategies used by law enforcement professionals. This research provides

a deeper insight on coping mechanisms in an attempt to provide a better

solution on how jail officers cope.

Problem Focused Engagement and Coping

Problem-focused coping stresses doing something to alter or

mitigate the stressor as stated by Dunn (2017). According to a study it

showed that optimism was related with greater engagement coping

generally, namely problem focuse engagement and emotion focused

engagement as researched by Nes and Segerstorm (2016). Problems like

academics or work, optimists use problem focused engagement to

effectively cope with their problems.

Furthermore, According to Carver & Smith (2016) Problem-focused

engagement coping strategy is directed towards stressor itself: taking

systematic steps to eliminate or to evade it, or to diminish its effect if it

cannot be avoided. For example, if layoffs are expected, an employee’s

problem-focused coping might be saving money, applying for other jobs,

obtaining training to improve hiring prospects, or working harder at the

current job to reduce the likelihood of being dismissed. On the other

 22

hand Problem-focused disengagement includes both problem avoidance

and wishful thinking. These reflect denial, avoidance and an inability to

look at the situations differently. They exhibit cognitive and behavioral

strategies to avoid the situations according to Tobin (2014)

Effective Problem-focused coping has the potential to resolve

stress. By looking for different options, looking for information, and

taking control of the situation, all of which are problem-focused methods

of coping, the individual decided to have the situation in control. The

effectiveness of problem-focused engagement coping depends on whether

the stressor can be managed by changing it, as said by Carver (2014).

Thus, it was found problem-focused coping had a biological effect on

stress, lowering the cortisol levels and promoting recovery from the

stress.

Correctional officers face different problems inside the correctional

facility. It is essential that officers use problem focused engagement

because it uses rational thinking and logical reasoning which creates

long term solutions rather than short ones to solve the problems. For

instance, jail officers are tasked to be observant especially for security

breaches. They must be always on a lookout for loopholes that might

cause problems in maintaining order inside the prison. If they found any

breaches to their security, jail officers always create long term solutions
 23

which makes it effective and efficient in the long run as stated by Pell

(2014)

Generally it includes both problem solving and cognitive

restructuring subscales. It involves cognitive and behavioral coping

strategies to alter the situation or to change the perspective of the

situation for the individual. These coping strategy are focused on the

stressful situation itself.

Emotion Focused Engagement Coping

Emotion focused engagement emphasizes minimizing the impact

cased by the problem as stated by Dunn (2017). It was found that

optimists use engagement strategies such as problem fuocused

engagement and emotion focused engagement. When optimists face

uncontrollable or unchangeable problems. They often rely on wmotion

focused coping. This strategy made efforts in changing manageable

situations and relieve distress in seemingly uncontrollable situations as

revealed by the study Nes & Stagerstorm (2016).

Thus, as stated by Dunn (2017) Emotion-focused engagement is

aimed towards at minimizing distress triggered by stressors. Duly

because there are several ways to aleviatte distress, emotion-focused

coping includes a wide range of responses, from self-soothing (e.g.,

relaxation, seeking emotional support), to expression of negative emotion

(e.g., yelling, crying), to a Engagement coping: coping aimed at dealing

 24

with the stressor or the resulting distress emotions Disengagement

coping: coping aimed at escaping from dealing with the stressor or the

resulting distress emotions focus on negative thoughts (e.g., rumination),

to attempts to escape stressful situations (e.g., avoidance, denial, wishful

thinking).

Generally, this engagement includes both social support and

express emotions subscale. The items exhibit openness with feelings to

others and increased social involvement, especially with with friends and

family. These coping strategies are focused towards an individual’s

emotional reaction to the stressor as stated by Tobin (2001)

Problem Focused Disengagement Coping

Problem-focused disengagement includes both problem avoidance

and wishful thinking. These reflect denial, avoidance and an inability to

look at the situations differently. They exhibit cognitive and behavioral

strategies to avoid the situations according to Tobin (2014)

Disengagement coping strategy is to act as though the problem

does not exist, so that it does not have to be reacted to, behaviorally or

emotionally. Wishful thinking distance the person from the stressor, at

least for the mean time, and denial creates a gap between reality and the

person’s experience as stated by Carver & Smith (2014)

 25

Despite this aim of escaping stressors, disengagement coping

strategy is by far ineffective in reducing distress over the long run, as it

does not alleviate about the threat’s existence and its impact. For

instance, if an individual is experiencing a real threat in their life and

they respond by going to the club, the threat will still remain when the

party is over. Eventually it must be dealt with. Indeed, for many stresses,

the longer one evades facing the problem, the more difficult it becomes

and the less time is available to deal with it when one finally turns to it.

Another problem is that avoidance and denial can promote a paradoxical

increase in intrusive thoughts about the stressor and an increase in

negative mood and anxiety (Najmi & Wegner 2008).

Coping Strategies and Goal-setting of Jail Officers

Based from a research study entitled “Stress, Burnout and Coping

strategies of Prison Officer Serving in the Irish Prison Service”, coping is

not a personality trait or a style that remains stable across all situations.

Irish prison service officers display coping mechanism that differs for

every individual and each person uses coping mechanism to a certain

extent. In relation to our study, it means Jail Officers have their own way

of coping up with the problems or stressors that they are experiencing in

their workplace which helps them to be an effective worker. In Goal-

Setting, an article about Goal Setting theory overview stated that the

source of motivation is the desire and intention to reach a goal. If an

 26

individual is not achieving the desired goals, they either become

motivated to increase effort or change their strategy. In our study, it

indicates that Jail officer having highly satisfying work situation suggest

that they are achieving their desired goals and shows satisfied motivation

in their workplace. Coping Strategy to Goal-Setting suggest no significant

association, In the study, the Jail Officers often uses Problem-Solving

as their Coping strategy and shows high satisfying work situations result

in their Goal-setting. As jail officers, they get used to on how things

work inside the correctional facility in such extent that regardless any

stressors they encountered in their work situation it would not have any

effect which somehow stabilizes their work-satisfaction. Even if Jail

officers experience problems which they need to cope up in order to

perform better, it does not affect their perspective on their work situation

and were able to see beyond their problems and shows high satisfaction

to their job.

Motivational Goal-Setting

According to an article discussed by motivation expert Charles

Kearns PhD, he discusses about Edwin Locke`s theory of motivation.

Employees were motivated to improve performance by having clear goals

and appropriate feedback. Having goals keeps people focused and

provides the assurance that everyone is working towards a common

future. Goals are also motivational, as working towards a goal can give
 27

everyone in an organization a sense of purpose and help to energize

them.

According to Top Achievement in their article entitled “Personal

Goal Setting” by Manktelow, J., and Fowler, K. (2013). It was indicated

that, one does not need to be in authority to set goals. Anyone, whatever

their position in life may be, they are qualified to set goals. Setting goals

was plainly aiming for success. To attain their highest potential, and

outstanding version of themselves.

Goal setting was merely an organized personal groundwork

process. It was a well-founded method for distinguishing what they want

to achieve – whether in the long- or short-term, and whether in their

individual life or their professional career. And the procedure of setting

goals allowed them to concentrate to achieve genuine and permanent

success. Goal setting was a useful method for measuring performance

indicators in work situations. They worked by giving people more self-

confidence the more they achieved, and this was indicative of how they

strive for meaning, or importance, or even to know that they have

achieved. It makes the officers more confident in their own ability as well

as improves their work situation as outlined in table 4.15. The goal

setting frequency has a goal setting score of 30-79 and has a frequency

and percentage of 0 because the jail officers interpreted their work

situations as average or highly satisfying. Without these goal settings,

many of these officers would undoubtedly fare in the low performing

 28

work situation category unless they were highly confident and competent

performers.

Based from a research study entitled “Stress, Burnout and Coping

strategies of Prison Officer Serving in the Irish Prison Service”, Coping is

not a personality trait or a style that remains stable across all situations.

Irish prison service officers display coping mechanism that differs for

every individual and each person uses coping mechanism to a certain

extent. In relation to our study, it means Jail Officers have their own way

of coping up with the problems or stressors that they are experiencing in

their workplace which helps them to be an effective worker. In Goal-

Setting, an article about Goal Setting theory overview stated that the

source of motivation is the desire and intention to reach a goal. If an

individual is not achieving the desired goals, they either become

motivated to increase effort or change their strategy.

In our study, it indicates that Jail officer having highly satisfying

work situation suggest that they are achieving their desired goals and

shows satisfied motivation in their workplace. Coping Strategy to Goal-

Setting suggest no significant association, In our study, the Jail Officers

often uses Problem-Solving as their Coping strategy and shows high

satisfying work situations result in their Goal-setting, As jail officers,

they get used to on how things work inside the correctional facility in
 29

such extent that regardless any stressors they encountered in their work

situation it would not have any effect which somehow stabilizes their

work-satisfaction. Even if Jail officers experience problems which they

need to cope up in order to perform better, it doesn’t affect their

perspective on their work situation and were able to see beyond their

problems and shows high satisfaction to their job.

An Article by Ross S. entitled, "5 Ways to Think Differently about

Motivation When Setting 2016 Goals", stated that the view of motivation

is different depending on the situation we are facing. It is much easier to

find motivation to eat when hungry than it is to start going to the gym.

The various ways to change one's perspective on motivation that are

suggested, ranging from scaling down the goal trying to be achieved, to

having a different mindset when facing obstacles and or challenges, show

that different situations have an impact on our degree of motivation, but

just because we face a challenge it does not mean we give up on their

goals. This research can serve as a guideline for jail officers to maintain

motivation when dealing with the difficult work environment they face on

a daily basis.

An Article by Manktelow J. and Fowler K. entitled, "Personal Goal

Setting" describes goal setting as an "organized personal planning

process" and it is a process that helps the person to recognize what they

want to achieve whether in long term or short term basis. These steps
 30

are relevant for jail officers who want to develop their personality traits,

coping mechanisms, as well as gain a better insight on their goals and

what step they need to work on and improve.

With all the dangers and challenges that face the country, highly

motivated law enforcement officers and respected law enforcement

organizations are much needed now more than ever in the society. It is

the most important element in the long term success of law enforcement

organization. A motivated officer having a strong moral ethics are critical

in assuring the safety of our community. The individual officer's

productivity is key to the effectiveness of American law enforcement.

Furthermore, positive or negative agency reputations can be formed by

the actions of a single officer or a single incident. In relation to the study,

by knowing the motivation Goal Setting of Pasay City Jail officers can

help us determine if their work situation is satisfies their Goal to serve

and protect our society by ensuring a good and positive environment

primarily inside prison walls. It is important to measure the satisfaction

of Jail officers because it may affect their work performance. The more

satisfied Jail officers in regards to their work the more they will perform

their expected responsibilities and goals.

Relationship of Motivational Goal-setting and Coping Mechanism

Problem–focused coping is generally viewed as an adaptive mode of

coping that involves actively planning or engaging in a specific behavior

 31

to overcome the problem causing distress.” (Folkman & Lazarus, 1985,

p150). “Problem-focused strategies involve defining a problem, generating

alternative solutions, and considering the relative costs and benefits.

Seeking advice from others, coming up with a strategy, or taking action

to make a situation better is considered to be problem-focused coping

strategies.

Synthesis

The foreign and local references prior stated were related to the

current study. The studies gave insight to the motivational goal-setting

and personality of pasay city jail officers implication to their coping

mechanism.

Most of the resources in the local and foreign literature and study

presented various subjects pertaining to goal setting. The main purpose

of this study was to assess thse jail officers motivational goal-setting as

well their personality, and the skills of the researchers in conducting

proper assessment to the respondents.