Dealing With Offeding Behaviour: Custodial Senetencing Flashcards
What does custodial sentencing involve?
A convicted offender spending time in prison or another closed institution.
What are the 4 main reasons for custodial sentencing?
- Deterrence
- Incapacitation
- Retribution
- Rehabilitation
What is deterrence?
The unpleasant prison experience is designed to putt someone off engaging in offending behaviour.
What two levels does deterrence work on?
- General deterrence
- Individual deterrence
What is the aim of general deterrence?
To send a broad message to members of a given society that crime wont be tolerated.
What should individual deterrence prevent?
The individual from repeating the same offences in light of their experience i.e. this view is based on the behaviourist idea of conditioning through vicarious punishment.
What is incapacitation?
The offender is taken out of society to prevent them reoffending as a means of protecting the public.
What is the need for incapacitation likely to depend on?
The severity of the offence and the nature of the offender.
What is retribution?
Society enacting revenge for the offence by making the offender suffer - the level of suffering should be proportionate to the seriousness of the offence.
What do many people see as the best possible option for retribution?
Prison - any other alternative is criticised as a soft option.
When released from prison how should offenders leave?
Better adjusted and ready to take their place back in society.
What should prison provide?
An opportunity to develop skills and training or access treatment programmes as well as giving the offender the chance to reflect on their offence.
What are the psychological effects associated with serving time in prison?
- Stress and depression
- Institutionalisation
- Prisonisation
How can stress and depression be a psychological effect of us to dial sentencing?
Suicide rates are high in prison than the general population as well as incidents of self mutilation and self harm.
The stress of the prison experience also increases the risk of developing a psychological disorder following release.
How is institutionalisation an effect of custodial sentencing?
Having adapted to norms and routines of prison life, inmates may become so accustomed to these that they’re no longer able to function on the outside.
How is prisonisation a psychological effect of custodial sentencing?
The way in which prisoners are socialised into adopting an ‘inmate code’ - behaviour may be considered unacceptable in the outside world and encouraged and rewarded in the institution .
What is recidivism?
Reoffending.
What do recidivism rates tell us?
To what extent prison acts as an effective deterrent.
What is the UKs figure of recidivism in the past years?
45%.
Why do reoffending rates vary?
With time period after release, age of offender, crime committed and the country.
What do the US, Denmark and Denmark regularly record rates in excess of?
60%.
In Norway what are rates of recidivism as low as?
20% which is significant because in Norway there is less emphasis on incarceration and greater emphasis on rehabilitation and skills development than anywhere else.
Evaluation: can have negative psychological effects on prisoners.
According to the Ministry of Justice 119 people idled themselves in England and Wales in 2016 which is a 29% increase on the previous year equating to an average suicide of 1 every 3 days. This supports the view that oppressive prison regimes may be detrimental to psychological health which could impact rehabilitation.
Evaluation: Provides opportunity for training and treatment
The Vera institute of justice claims offenders who take part in college education programmes are 43% less likely to reoffend following release and that prisons that offer these programmes report fewer incidents of violence. This suggests prison may be a worthwhile experience assuming offenders are able to access these programmes.
Evaluation: Offenders my learn to become better offenders
Offenders may undergo more ‘dubious’ eduction as part of their sentence. Incarceration with long-term offenders may give younger inmates the opportunity to learn the tricks of the trade from more experienced prisoners. This form of education may undermine attempts to rehabilitate prisoners and consequently may make reoffending more likely.
Evaluation: the purpose of prison is unclear
A survey found 47% saw the primary purpose of prison to be to punish the offender for their wrongdoing which many saw as ‘too soft’ that wouldn’t deter existing or would-be offenders.
However 40% of respondents held the view that prisons main emphasis should be on reform and rehabilitation.
