dealing with offenders: the aims of custodial sentencing

Question 1

what are the aims of custodial sentencing?

Answer 1

• deterrence
• incapacitation
• retribution
• rehabiliation

Question 2

how is deterrence an aim of custodial sentencing?

Answer 2

• unpleasant prison experience designed to put people off engaging in offending behaviour
• general deterrence - broad message to members of society - crime will not be tolerated
• individual deterrence - preventing individual from reoffending in light of their experience

Question 3

how is incapacitation an aim of custodial sentencing?

Answer 3

• individual removed from society to prevent reoffending as a means of protecting public
• explains why serious + violent crimes more likely to result in custodial sentencing

Question 4

how is retribution an aim of custodial sentencing?

Answer 4

society enacting revenge for crime by making offender suffer

Question 5

how is rehabilitation an aim of custodial sentencing?

Answer 5

• prisons should reform individuals

Question 6

what is the effectiveness of custodial sentencing?

Answer 6

• ministry justice research 2013 suggest 57% of UK offender will reoffend within a year of release
• in 2007 - 14 prisons reported reoffending rate 70%
• UK + US some of the highest rates of recidivism

Question 7

what is recidivism?

Answer 7

reoffending after conviction

Question 8

what are the effects of prison?

Answer 8

• stress and depression - evidenced by higher rates of SH + psych disturbance amongst prisoners + ex-prisoners
• institutionalisation - prisoner may become accustomed to norms + routines in prison - struggle to function outside
• prisonisation - prisoners can be socialised into adopting an ‘inmate code’ and behaviours that would be unacceptable outside may be encouraged + rewarded inside
• labelling - prevent job, friends etc - stigma

Question 9

evaluate custodial sentencing

Question 10

how are there individual differences in recidivism?

Answer 10

• more effective with some than others
• walker et al 1981 - length of sentence made little diff to habitual offender - just as likely to reoffend no matter what their sentence was

Question 11

how is providing opportunity for training and treatment a strength of custodial sentencing?

Answer 11

• provides training and treatment
• one objective is rehabilitation and many pffenders access education and training whilst in prison which increases the possibility they will find employment upon release
• shirley 2019 argued offenders who take part in college education programmes are 43% less likely to reoffend after release
• prisons who offer programmes report fewer incidents of violence

Question 12

how is norway a weakness to custodial sentencing

Answer 12

• norway reoffending rates is 20% compared to 70% in the UK
  has a much higher emphasis on rehabilitation the incarceration
• treats prisoners like humans and attempt to create their environment to be most like the real world while still serrated from the public
  eg. wearing their own clothes
  they are allocated guards for 1 to 1 support and learnt skills to reintegrate themselves back into society
• more effective then british systems
  however, more money and less retribution

Question 13

how is the negative psychological effect on prisoners a limitation of custodial sentencing?

Answer 13

The Prison Reform Trust (2014) found that 25% of women and 15% of men in prison reported signs of psychosis, supporting that custodial sentencing causes stress and depression and suggesting that it may not be suitable for psychologically vulnerable individuals

Question 14

what was argued about the true effectiveness of prisons?

Answer 14

• Davies and Raymond (2000)
• concluded that prisons do little to rehabilitate or deter offenders, and that despite this, government ministers often exaggerate the benefits of custodial sentencing to appear ‘tough on crime’.
• This weakens the use of prisons and similar institutions as an effective way of dealing with offending behaviour