AC2.2 Flashcards
Retribution
Retribution is inflicting punishment on an offender as revenge for the crime they have committed. It is seen to be proportionate to the crime they committed (“eye for an eye”) e.g. receiving the death penalty if found guilty of murder. The purpose of retribution is to express moral outrage felt by society by justifying already committed crimes; it is not a way of preventing future crime. Retribution is supported by Right Realists who believe in the rational choice theory. This is the belief that offenders consciously choose to commit crime so they should be fully responsible for their actions. Retribution as a punishment is therefore seen as justifiable because offenders made a choice to break the moral code in society.
Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation aims to reduce recidivism by addressing the root cause of criminal behaviour. It does not focus on offender’s previous acts but uses treatment programmes to change their future behaviour. Programmes such as education, training and anger management courses in prisons allow offenders to avoid unemployment etc so they can reintegrate back into society once released, preventing the need for them to reoffend. Rehabilitation is supported by Left Realists as it acknowledges how social factors e.g. poverty and unemployment lead to people committing crime. Rehabilitation is also supported by Cognitive theories e.g. CBT which teaches offenders to correct thinking errors (anger management programmes) which can reduce aggressive behaviour e.g. assault and therefore future crime.
Deterrence FINISH!!!!
Deterrence is the ‘putting off’ of committing crime. It is an act of making certain actions appear undesirable and less likely to occur by instilling a fear of punishment or consequence. For example, the instillation of security cameras in high crime areas may reduce crime rates as people are less likely to commit crime if they know they are being watched. Deterrence is supported by Social Learning Theory whereby if offenders see a role model e.g. a peer being punished for offending, they will be less likely to imitate that behaviour (negative reinforcement).
Reparation
Reparation involves the offender making amends for a wrong they have done to society, an individual or both. This can be done by material compensation e.g. unpaid work or social reconciliation. An example of reparation is restorative justice. This is where the victim and offender are brought together and the victim explains to the offender the impact their crime had on them. This allows the victim to have closure in the events as well as making the offender realise/ acknowledge the harm they have caused from their actions. RJ has been found to reduce reoffending rates by 14% suggesting RJ can be effective. Reparation is supported by Labelling Theory as it sees RJ as a way of reintegrating offenders into mainstream society. This is because it enables them to show genuine remorse and prevents them from being pushed into secondary deviance.
Public Protection
Criticisms of Retribution FINISH!!!
Criticisms of Rehabilitation
-Requires offenders to actually want to change their life.
-Requires a considerable amount of resources and professional support from therapists etc (- economy).
-Marxism: programmes shift blame of offending onto individuals and their failings, real cause is capitalism.
Criticisms of Deterrence
Criticisms of Reparation
Criticisms of Public Protection
