Policies Influenced By Theories Flashcards
What are the biological policies
Death penalty
Eugenics
Death penalty definition
The death penalty is probably the most extreme biologically driven
policy, it is when a government or state executes someone, usually but
not always because they have committed a serious crime
It biologically punishes, usually using chemicals, the offender until death
as a proportionate punishment for the severity of the crime committed
The Death Penalty was temporarily abolished in 1965 in the UK, the
murder rate did not soar and as a result a permanent abolition took
place in 1969
Death penalty theory link
According to the biological theories such as Lombroso’s born criminal
theory crime is innate people are ‘born criminal’. If this is the case, can
we ever rehabilitate them? This has been an argument that has been
used to support the death penalty. It is the ultimate and most extreme
solution to the ‘born criminal’.
Death penalty example
In the US, 25 people were executed in
20234. 27 states still have the death
penalty. States with the death penalty
include Alabama, Texas, and Ohio. The
recently re-elected President Donald Trump
is in favour of increased use of the death
penalty.
Death penalty assesment
Even within prison some criminals still have the opportunity to commit
crimes. The death penalty ensures that the most dangerous criminals in
society can never commit crimes again.
The murder rate is 25% higher in death penalty states than in non-death
penalty states, suggesting that capital punishment does not effectively
deter crime. For example, in California on Mar. 13, 2019, Governor Gavin
Newsom ordered a halt to the death penalty stating: “I will not oversee
the execution of any person while Governor…Our death penalty system
has been, by all measures, a failure.”
Kenneth Smith Case: The execution of Kenneth Smith in Alabama using
nitrogen gas in 2024 raised ethical concerns about cruel and unusual
punishment. The method was described as inhumane, highlighting the
moral issues surrounding capital punishment and whether it violates
human rights.
Many murders occur in the heat of the moment, meaning perpetrators
are not considering future consequences like execution. Additionally,
crimes committed under the influence of drugs or alcohol suggest
impaired judgment, reducing the effectiveness of deterrence.
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There have been many well-known miscarriages of justice where people
have been wrongfully imprisoned for many years/ sentenced to death
before being found not guilty. A study by the innocence project found
that at least 4% of those sentenced to death are innocent.
Given the ineffectiveness of deterrence, alternative measures like
rehabilitation, mental health support, and preventive policing may be
more effective in reducing crime.
Eugenics definition
Eugenicists were obsessed with the fear that the human race was in
danger of ‘degenerating’ because the poor were breeding at a faster
rate than the higher classes
As a result, the poor were passing on ‘inferior’ genes for low intelligence,
insanity, poverty and criminality more quickly than the higher classes
were passing on their ‘superior’ genes, thus lowering the average
intelligence and moral quality of the population
Eugenics theory link
Genetic theories of criminality have argued that the tendency to
criminality is transmitted by inheriting a ‘criminal gene’. In the early 20th
century this idea was associated with a movement called eugenics.
Eugenics examples
Eugenicists argued that the ‘genetically unfit’ should be prevented from
breeding. This led them to favour policies such as the compulsory
sterilisation of ‘defectives’ such as criminals (since they believed
criminality to be hereditary) and those with mental illness or learning
difficulties.
Under California’s eugenic law, first passed in 1909, anyone committed
to a state institution could be sterilized. As a result, between the early
1920s and the 1950s, one-third of the national total were sterilized in
California state institutions for the mentally ill and disabled. In addition,
in 1927 the US Supreme Court ruled it was legal to compulsory sterilise
the ‘unfit’, including those with learning difficulties, ‘for the protection
and health of the state’.
Eugenics assesment
Eugenics has been historically linked to horrific abuses, including forced
sterilisation programs in Nazi Germany and early 20th-century America.
It violates individual rights and bodily autonomy.
It does not consider the environmental factors which influence someone
to commit a crime. A child may not have a genetic disposition to commit
a crime but may be influenced by their environment and upbringing.
Eugenics cannot possibly stop this.
Supporters argue it may work to prevent criminals from producing
criminal offspring if a genetic link is proven. Therefore, it may be
possible to control crime if less individuals are being born with criminal
tendencies making society safer in the long term.
If eugenics were allowed, governments might expand its use beyond
violent criminals, targeting political dissidents, minorities, or
marginalised groups.
What are the individualistic policy’s
Phycoanalysis
Aversion therapy
Token economies
Phycoanalysis definition
Freud’s psychoanalysis is a lengthy treatment, often lasting
years, with patients seen five times a week. It aims to uncover
unconscious conflicts and repressed emotions, bringing them
into consciousness for resolution. To access the unconscious, Freud used
free association, where a patient responds with the first word that comes
to mind, and hypnosis to reveal hidden thoughts. Through this deep self-
exploration, patients gain insight into their emotions and behaviors,
leading to them resolving conflicts in the unconscious mind which, in turn,
tackles the root causes of criminal behaviour.
Phycoanalysis theory link
Freud was the father of psychoanalysis, he believed it was your early
childhood experiences that influenced likelihood of committing crime. He
believed we have a tripartite personality made up of the id, ego,
superego. According to Freud, riminality is the result of a weak, overharsh,
or deviant superego due to early childhood experiences . Therefore, he
developed psychoanalysis treatment - to unlock the conflicts in the
unconscious mind between the id (instincts) and the superego (morality)
so that they can be resolved.
Phycoanalysis example
Aichhorn (a young offender’s psychologist) applied this psychoanalytic
idea to treating young offenders. He believed their criminality was
because they had uncaring or absent parents, they had failed to develop
a strong superego. Aichhorn worked with the young offenders using
psychoanalysis to try and strengthen the young offenders’ superegos,
hoping to reduce reoffending. In his book Wayward Youth (1925),
Aichhorn described successful cases where troubled children improved
after developing trust with him and addressing their unconscious
conflicts.
Phycoanalysis assesment
Psychoanalysis is arguably the least favoured individualistic crime control
policy. Psychoanalysis is costly and time-consuming, Freud saw his
patients 5 times per week often for years. Therefore, it is impractical and
has never been used on a large scale for treating criminals.
Psychoanalysis gives analysts the power to define what is normal or
abnormal. For example, Freud regarded homosexuality as abnormal.
Imposing their definitions this way can give rise to abuse.
Blackburn (1993) claimed there are very few positive evaluations of
psychoanalysis as treatment for offenders. There is little empirical
evidence that psychoanalysis is effective in reducing criminal behavior.
Other therapies, such as CBT or behavioral interventions, have more
measurable success in reducing reoffending.
Aichhorn applied psychoanalysis to troubled youth, focusing on
emotional neglect as a cause of delinquency. By building trust and
addressing unconscious conflicts, he helped some children improve. His
methods influenced modern juvenile rehabilitation programs.
Aversion therapy definitions
Aversion therapy is a behavioral treatment that pairs an unwanted
behavior with an unpleasant stimulus to reduce or eliminate that
behavior. Aversion therapy, when used for sex offenders: Offenders are
asked to think about an unacceptable sexual fantasy until they are
aroused. A strongly aversive stimulus is administered (e.g. electric shock,
nausea inducing drug). This is repeated until they associate the deviant
arousal with the negative stimulus.
Aversion therapy theory links
Aversion therapy applies to Eysenck’s personality theory to the treatment
of sex offenders. Eysenck states that criminals tend to be strongly
extravert and neurotic. This makes them harder to condition because they
are more resistant to learning through punishment. Conditioning
therefore needs to be stronger in order to change the behaviour.
Aversion therapy examples
At Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) in the 1960s and 1970s, aversion
therapy was used in an attempt to “cure” homosexuality, which was then
wrongly considered a mental disorder. Gay men were subjected to
distressing treatments, such as electrical shocks or nausea-inducing
drugs, while being shown images of men, aiming to create a negative
association with same-sex attraction.
Aversion therapy assessment
Generally, aversion therapy tends to be successful while it is still under
the direction of a therapist, but relapse rates are high. Once the individual
is out in the real world and exposed to the stimulus without the presence
of the aversive sensation, it is highly likely that they will return to the
previous behaviour patterns.
Modern research does not support aversion therapy as an effective
method for crime prevention. Alternative therapies, like CBT, anger
management, and restorative justice programs, are more successful in
reducing reoffending rates.
Ethical issues over the use of punishments in therapy are also a major
point of concern. It often involves causing physical harm e.g. electric
shocks, vomiting (can lead to electrolyte unbalance).
A further ethical issue is that historically, when homosexuality was
considered a mental illness, gay individuals were subjected to forms of
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aversion therapy to try and alter their sexual preferences. Depression,
anxiety, and suicide have been linked to some cases of aversion therapy.
Token economies definition
A token economy (also referred to as a behaviour
modification programme) is a behavioral therapy system
that reinforces desired behaviors by rewarding individuals
with tokens, which can later be exchanged for meaningful
rewards. It is commonly used in prisons, schools, and
psychiatric institutions to encourage positive behavior. How token
economies work in prisons:
The institution draws up a list of desirable behaviours e.g.
obeying the rules, interacting positively with staff
When the offender behaves in a desired way, they earn a token
Tokens may be exchanged for rewards, e.g. sweets, phone calls
Through this selective reinforcement, good behaviour becomes
more likely and undesirable behaviour less likely
Token economies theory link
Token economies are based on Skinner’s operant learning theory
(behaviourism). Behaviour that results in a positive outcome is likely to
be repeated. On the other hand, behaviour that results in a negative
outcome is not likely to be repeated. Therefore, we can ‘shape’
behaviour using positive and negative reinforcements.
Token economies example
The UK version of TE is incentives and earned privileges (IEPs). Three
levels: basic, standard, and enhanced. Everyone entering prison starts on
standard but you can move up and down levels depending on your
behaviour.
Token economies assesment
It can be administered by anyone and the rewards (e.g. sweets, phone
calls home) are relatively inexpensive in comparison with other policies
such as psychoanalysis.
Many studies have found it to be successful. For example, Hobbs and Holt
(1976) conducted a study looking at the effects of TE on delinquent boys.
The study found large gains in the amount of desirable behaviour.
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Although effective at modifying behaviour in prisons when released the
desirable behaviours tend to disappear (recidivism).
There are many ethical concerns in relation to punishments used in some
prisons in the USA which have been found to withhold food and drink and
used it as a ‘reward’. Critics argue that these are a human right and should
not be used to modify behaviour.
What are the sociological preventions
Situational crime prevention
Penal population
SCP definition
Situational Crime Prevention (SCP) aims to reduce the opportunities for
crime by increasing the risks and reducing the rewards. SCP includes
‘target hardening’ measures such as locking cars, employing security
guards and reshaping the environment to ‘design crime out’ of an area.
