Document And Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2011	Feb. 22, 2012	Jun. 30, 2011
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Entity Registrant Name	CORRECTIONS CORP OF AMERICA
Entity Central Index Key	0001070985
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		99,542,077
Entity Public Float			$ 2,281,002,627
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No