Discuss the Aims of Punishment (AC 2.2) Flashcards
What are the aims of punishment?
- Retribution
- Rehabilitation
- Deterrence
- Public Protection
- Reparation
- Denunciation
What is retribution?
Retribution involves punishing the offender in a way that is proportional to the crime.
e.g. the death penalty for murders, “a life for a life”
Explain the idea of retribution
Retribution is based on the idea that criminals deserve to be punished, as society is morally entitled to take revenge on them for breaking the moral code. It is a justification for punishing crimes already committed, the punishment itself is morally good regardless of if it changes the offender/ prevents future crime.
What has proportionality lead to?
Proportionality has lead to a tariff system/ fixed scale of mandatory penalties for offending, that can still be harsh to reflect society’s moral outrage e.g. hate crime can carry a higher tariff sentence to reflect society’s outrage with a penalty of 7 years for grievous bodily harm if it is proven to be racially motivated.
What theories link to retribution?
Right realism - rational choice theory states that criminals are fully responsible for their actions and so must suffer outrage for that choice
Functionalism - Durkheim finds that moral outrage from retribution performs the function of boundary maintenance in society
Criticisms of retribution
- Can be argued that offenders deserve the chance of forgiveness and to make amends
- A tariff system of fixed penalties offers punishment to offenders even when it has no benefits e.g. for a remorseful offender
- Disagreements can occur on what a proportional penalty is, and what crime can be considered more serious than others
What is rehabilitation?
Rehabilitation is the idea that punishment can be used to reform offenders.
Explain the idea of rehabilitation
Through various treatment programs that address the issues which led to an offender’s offending, future crimes can be prevented.
Examples of treatment programs linked to rehabilitation
- Education and training programs to avoid unemployment upon release, and provide the opportunity to earn an honest living
- Anger management for violent offenders e.g. Anger Replacement Training (ART)
- Drug treatment programs to treat any dependancy on drugs
What theories link to rehabilitation?
Individualistic theories of criminality see rehabilitation as a significant aim of punishment, and cognitive theories favour CBT to teach offenders to correct their thinking errors.
-Eysenck’s suggestion of aversion therapies
-Skinner’s suggestion of token economies
What is deterrence?
Deterrence involves putting people off committing crime, e.g. through the fear of being caught. There are two forms of deterrence.
What are the two forms of deterrence?
Individual and general
Explain individual deterrence
The use of punishment to deter an individual offender from reoffending, the argument being that tough sentences convince offenders Its not worth repeating the experience. E.g. Margret Thatcher 1980 introduced juvenile detention centres to deter young offenders
Explain general deterrence
The use of punishment to deter society in general from breaking the law. Seeing an individual punished deters society from committing a similar crime because they know they will be punished in a similar way - the punishment of an individual has a general effect. E.g historically stock/ public execution would show consequences, nowadays the media reports on punishment
What theory links to individual deterrence?
Right realism - rational choice theory would suggest that high chances of getting caught and sever punishment is like to deter people
What theory links to general deterrence?
Social learning theory - Vicarious reinforcement shows If a potential offender sees a model, like a peer, get punished they are less likely to imitate.
Criticisms of deterrence
- Very little evidence suggests that juvenile detention centres/ boot camps deter young offending
- Almost 1/2 of prisoners are reconvicted within a year (prison is not an effective deterrent)
- Assumes criminals are rational an aware of punishments, they could be ignorant and/ or driven by emotions
- If there is little chance of being caught severe punishments are unlikely to deter
What is public protection?
Public protection is the use of punishment to incapacitate offenders to protect the general public
What is incapacitation? Provide examples
Incapacitation of offenders is the use of punishment to remove their physical ability to offend. Examples of policies:
- Execution
- Cutting off the hands of thieves
- Chemical castration for sex offenders
- Banishment (19th century convicts were sent to Australia)
- Curfews/ electronic tagging to restrict the offender
- Prison
Explain imprisonment
Imprisonment is the main means of incapacitation, it prevents further offending by taking offenders out of circulation
How has incapacitation for public protection influenced sentencing laws?
UK - The Crime Sentences Act 1997 introduced mandatory minimum sentences for repeat offenders e.g an automatic life for a second sexual/violent crime
USA - “3 strikes an you’re out” e.g Jerry Williams was given 25 years with no parole (life sentence) for stealing a slice of pizza
What theories link to public protection?
Biological theories - Lombroso claimed that criminals are biologically different to rehabilitation is not possible, punishments like exile and castration are therefore favourable
Right realists - Incapacitation projects the public and can reduce the crime rates by taking care of high profile offenders
Criticisms of public protection
- Does not tackle the causes of crime
- Contributes to overcrowding in prisons
- USA: 3 strikes and you’re out can be seen as unreasonable.
What is reparation
Reparation is the idea that offenders should make amends with the victim, society or both. This differs depending on if the harm done is material or social damage.
Reparation of material damage
if the harm is material damage then compensation can be paid to the victim to cover any damages, or paid back to society through community service work like cleaning graffiti. Both punishments can be court ordered
Reparation of social damage
If the harm is social damage the offender must recognise the wrongfulness of their actions and can speak wit the victim to express remorse and seek forgiveness. This gives the victim voice to express how they have been impacted, and bring closure as well as integrate the offender back into society.
What theory links to reparation?
Labelling theory - Reparation prevents offenders falling into secondary deviance
Functionalist - Durkheim argues that it is essential for society to run smoothly if things be put back to normal
Criticisms of reparation
- Cannot work for all crime e.g. homicide victims, or rape victims who may not want to face nor forgive their rapist
- Can be regarded as too soft and letting offenders off lightly
What is denunciation
Denunciation is helping to reinforce the moral and ethical codes of society, showing the offender societies disapproval of their action. These have changed over time, e.g. smoking now being less acceptable
What theories link to denunciation?
Functionalist - Derkhiem’s theory argues boundary maintenance is a function of crime strengthened by denunciation
