Aims of punishment Flashcards
What are the 5 main aims of punishment?
Retribution, Rehabilitation, Deterrence, public protection and reparation
What is the aim of retribution?
Avenge the victim and the public for offenders crime.
What is proportionality?
Where the punishment fits the crime and leads to a system or fixed scale of mandatory penalties.
What theories does retribution link to
Right realism - fitting the consequence of the crime zero tolerance
Functionalism - retribution performs boundary maintenance
Does retribution work
Argue offenders deserve forgiveness
Punishment has to bee inflicted even if no good comes from it
What is the aim of rehabilitation?
reform offenders and reintroduce them into society
What are examples of punishment for retribution?
Life sentence, prison, the death penalty
What are examples of punishment for rehabilitation?
community sentences and probation orders
What theories does rehabilitation link to?
Individualistic theories - behaviour modification treatments such as CBT
Sociological theories - Left realism
Does rehabilitation work
Right realists - argue it has limited success
Marxists - criticise it for shifting responsibility for crime into individuals
What is the aim of deterrence?
To prevent crime from being committed in society.
Examples of deterrence punishments
Suspended sentence
What theories link to deterrence
Right realism - rational choice theory and situational crime prevention
Does deterrence work
Half of all prisoners re-offend within a year of release
deterrence assumes offenders know the punishments but ignores the penalties
What is the aim of public protection
punishment must serve a useful purpose for society as a whole by protecting them from danger
