Theories of Punishment Flashcards
what are the 3 instrumental reasons for punishing crime
REDUCTION through;
-deterrance
-rehabilitation
-incapacitation
what is the expressive reason for punishing crime
-retribution / revenge
give a prison in Norway that focuses on rehabilitation
-Bastoy prison in Norway
-16% reoffending rates in Norway , lowest in Europe
give 5 alternatives to prison
-fines
-discharges
-community sentences
-probation
-suspended sentences
what is the functionalist perspective on punishment
-Durkheim argues crime allows for boundary maintenance and social solidarity
-retributive justice/ revenge
-restitutive justice / compensation or reparation eg pay for criminal damage
what is the marxist perspective on punishment
-punishment maintains social order and is part of the RSA
who are the two marxist theorists on punishment
-Rusche and Kurcheimer
-Melossi and Pavraini
what do Rusche and Kurcheimer argue
-in capitalist society prisons become the dominant form of punishment
-fines are ideal for higher classes
what do Melossi and Pavraini argue
-prisons are similar to factories in a capitalist society
-eg hierarchies, subordination and loss of liberty
what is the left realist perspective on punishment
-prison is ineffective at reducing crime, needs to combine with restorative justice
-offenders who did RJ had frequency of reoffending fall 27% but only 1% of prisoners have access to RJ
give a criticism of left realism/ restorative justice
-does not work for sexual abuse cases
who is the postmodern theorist for prisons
-Foucalt
what does Foucalt / postmodernists argue about punishment
-change from sovereign power to disciplinary power
-eg prisoners under constant surveillance
-we all carry out surveillance on each other
what did the 1997 New Labour gov argue about prison and why is it criticised
-prison should be a deterrant for petty crime
-led to more ppl in prison and UK has highest incarceration rate of Western Europe
what does Garland argue
-US has 2.2 million prisoners and 5 million under supervision
-when stats reach this level its no longer about individual punishment but imprisoning whole groups of ppl eg young black males
what is transcarceration
-sociologists argue this is where instead of prison you are transferred from agency to agency
what do the New Right argue
-prison works
-prison pop doubled and increasing 3.6% a year
-reoffending rates in one year = 25% adults and 37% juveniles
give 2 ways punishment may affect crime
-rational choice theory /right realism ; decreases crime to avoid punishment
-labelling theory Becker; punishing person labels them as criminal –> SFP
what is the difference between disintegrative and reintegrative shaming
-disintegrative shaming excludes person from society
-reintegrative shaming stigmatises crime not the person
what was the ban the box movement
-ban the ticky box used to signify a criminal offence as it may increase reoffending rates
-but also may protect the public
