custodial sentencing ao3

Question 1

opportunities for training and treatment

Answer 1

• Provided education and training in prison increases the likelihood the prisoner will find employment upon release
• Treatment programmes such as anger management will reduce the likelihood of recidivism
• However, some prisons may not provide these programmes

Question 2

Many prisoners may have had pre-existing psychological and emotional difficulties

Answer 2

• This may explain why they committed the crime in the first place, and why there appears to be a high percentage of prisoners experiencing psychological issues

Question 3

Evidence supports psychological effects of custodial sentencing

Answer 3

Bartol (1995) suggested that imprisonment can be ‘brutal, demeaning and generally devastating’
- The Prison Reform Trust (2014) found that 25% of women and 15% of men in prison reported symptoms which indicated
psychosis
- This suggests that it is not effective in rehabilitating offenders, particularly ones who are psychologically vulnerable

Question 4

Prisons can be described as ‘universities for crime’

Answer 4

• Prisoners may give younger inmates tips and tricks for committing crimes
• this may undermine attempts to rehabilitate prisoners, making reoffending more likely

Question 5

Prisoners have no autonomy

Answer 5

• Prisons have strict rules and regulations for times to sleep, wake, eat, exercise etc
• Prisoners become accustomed to the prison way of life and find it hard to adapt outside of prison

Question 6

there are alternatives

Answer 6

• Davies and Raymond (2000) concluded that government ministers often exaggerate the benefits of custodial sentencing, and that prisons do little to deter or rehabilitate offenders
• Therefore, alternatives such as community service and restorative justice may be more effective