Individualistic Theory Policies Flashcards
Social leaning theory policy and how it’s successful and unsuccessful
Token economy: a method of encouraging desirable behaviour especially in a prison by offering rewards of token money that can be exchanged for special food, access to television and other bonuses. Desirable behaviour such as: completing chores, following rules
- can be used in a school setting when a teacher is wanting desired behaviour giving students stars for desired behaviour and then building stars up for a reward
It is successful Hobbs and holt observed the introduction of a successful token economy system at the Althodance boys industrial school. By providing rewards for desirable behaviour. Statistics only 42% of boys in cottage 2 showed desirable behaviour after token economy this increased to 84%. IEPs are cheap to run and are widely used in prisoners and studies show they reduce undesirable behaviour with only 10-20% of prisoners not responding to them. These tend to be the ones with more serious convictions
Not successful for example IEPs in prisons only work in prison setting and does not transfer to outside life.
Psychodynamic policy and example of it being successful and not successful
Psychoanalysis- the aim is to release repressed emotions and experiences so that the psyche is rebalanced and the patient is cured
It is used by You encourage criminals to explore their unconscious thoughts and rebalance the psyche - specifically their childhood. This will prevent future offending.
Psychoanalysis was used successfully by Aichhorn at a young offenders institution. He provided a safe and happy environment and this reduced offending within YOI.
Psychoanalysis has had little impact on criminal justice policies for example: Eysenck found that only 44% of psychoanalysis patients improved against 72%. It is also costly and time consuming. So therefore not used on large scale ( this wasn’t on criminals but on the mentally ill but if it doesn’t work on them it won’t work on criminals) it also raises ethical issues
Formal policy
Psychological policy
Aversion therapy- a type of behaviour therapy designed to make patients give up an undesirable habit by causing them to associate it with an unpleasant effect
Treatment of sex offenders. Eysenck dates that criminals are harder to condition because they are more resistant to learning through punishment . Conditioning therefore need to be stronger in order to change the sex offenders behaviour
Offenders are asked to think about an unacceptable sexual fantasy until they are aroused. A strongly aversive stimulus is then administered such as an electric shock. This procedure is repeated until the offender comes to associate the deviant arousal and the stimulus.
Very limited success. Usually only short term and it’s use in attempting to cure gay people has also been criticised as human rights abuse
Formal policy
