AC2.2

Question 1

Retribution

Answer 1

Inflicting punishment on an offender as vengeance for a criminal act. Criminals deserve to be punished and made to suffer and society is morally entitled to take revenge.

Question 2

Link to theory (Retribution): Right realists

Answer 2

Right realists suggests that crime is committed by an unsocialised underclass who lack male role models. Therefore need to punish them severely to teach them from right to wrong. Right realists support the rational choice theory which states all humans make choices on the basis of costs and benefits.

Question 3

Criticisms of retribution as a punishment aim:

Answer 3

• Justice into a transaction - judge sentence and offender serves it.
• Prioritises punishment over crime.
• Difficult to consider mitigating factors.
• Dehumanises offenders
• Restorative justice (another way)

Question 4

Rehabilitation

Answer 4

Changing offenders so they become useful members in society and not reoffend.

Question 5

Link to theory (Rehabilitation): Individualistic theories

Answer 5

Freud talks about the absence of same sex parents. Bowlby talks about maternal deprivation.

Question 6

Criticisms of rehabilitation as a punishment aim:

Answer 6

• Many offenders go on to reoffend even after undergoing programmes aimed at changing their behaviour.
• Focuses on individual offender’s failings rather than looking at how society as a whole leads people to commit crime.

Question 7

Deterrence

Answer 7

Put people off committing crime through fear of being caught and punished.

Question 8

Individual deterrence

Answer 8

To ensure the offender doesn’t reoffend. A suspended sentence is an example of individual deterrence because the term of imprisonment will only start if the person reoffends.

Question 9

General deterrence

Answer 9

This is to prevent potential offenders from committing a crime. Harsh punishments may be handed out to offenders to send a message to other people that this behaviour will not be tolerated. Example: 2011 London riots man selling water, sentenced to 6 months in prison.

Question 10

Link to theory (Deterrence): Social learning theory

Answer 10

Social learning theory says that we learn our behaviour by observing and imitating others, so if we see other people severely punished for crimes we would avoid repeating their behaviour due to fear of punishment.

Question 11

Criticisms of deterrence as a punishment aim:

Answer 11

• About 50% of prisoners reoffend within a year of release, suggesting that prison is not an effective deterrent.
• Deterrence assumes that offenders behave ‘rationally’ and think through the consequences of their actions. However, many offences are spontaneous and fuelled by emotion or drugs and alcohol.

Question 12

Public protection (Incapacitation)

Answer 12

Removing dangerous offenders from society.

Question 13

Link to theory (Public protection): Right realists

Answer 13

Right realists see incapacitation as a way of protecting the public from crime. Small numbers of persistent offenders are responsible for majority of crimes, so incapacitating them with long prison sentences would reduce the crime rates.

Question 14

Criticisms of public protection as a punishment aim:

Answer 14

• Incapacitation leads to longer sentences and long-term ‘warehousing’ of offenders with little hope of release. This leads to an overpopulated prison.
• Does nothing to deal with the causes of crime or to change offenders into law-abiding citizens.

Question 15

Reparation

Answer 15

The offender makes amends for what they did, either to an individual victim or society as a whole.

Question 16

Restorative justice

Answer 16

Aims to bring offenders and victims together so offenders can make direct reparation.

Question 17

Criticisms of reparation as a punishment aim:

Answer 17

• May not work for all types of offences e.g. rape victim may not want to face or forgive rapist.
• Some regard reparation as too soft a form of punishment that lets offenders off lightly.