UNIT 4 - AC 2.1 - 2.3

Question 1

In 3 brief points, describe the meaning of Social Control.

Answer 1

• the techniques and strategies for preventing deviant human behaviour in any society.
• for society to function smoothly, people need to behave more or less as others expect them too.
• Society has various means of achieving control over its members’ behaviour - which can be grouped into 2 main forms:
• internal social control and external control

Question 2

What is internal control?

Answer 2

This is a process which has control over our behaviour from within ourselves. e.g personalities and values etc

Question 3

How does Freud’s psychoanalytic theory link to internal control?

Answer 3

· according to freud psychoanalytical theory, we conform to societies expectations and rules because the super-ego tells us to do so.
· Along with the id and the ego, the superego forms part of our personality.
· Our superego tells us what is right and wrong and inflicts guilt feelings on us if we fail to do as it urges.

Question 4

Rational Ideology is a form of Internal Social Control. What is it?

Answer 4

The idea/belief that your conscience guides you to reach a solution and follow the rules through the use of feelings like guilt, anxiety and worry

Question 5

Tradition is a form of Internal Social Control. What is it?

Answer 5

The idea that your tradition (religion/culture/upbringing) will encourage you to conform to norms and tell you what to and what not to do

Question 6

What is external control?

Answer 6

This is a process which has control over our behaviour through social agencies e.g education, family etc.

Question 7

The Fear of Punishment can be seen as an External Social Control. How? -include an example:

Answer 7

Fear of punishment:
Using punishment as a deterrent to stop people from offending.
· there are theorists e.g right realists- they argue that the fear of being caught and punished is what ensures that many “would-be criminals” continue to obey the law-in other words, fear acts as a deterrent.
example: The increased presence of the police and knowledge that they can arrest you will act as a deterrent to doing anything bad

Question 8

What are the two forms of deterrence?

Answer 8

Individual deterrence: punishment on offenders to prevent/deter them from committing further crimes.
General deterrence: Fear of punishment that prevents others from committing similar crimes e.g. death penalty, lengthy prison terms.

Question 9

Coercion can be seen to act as a form of External Social Control. How?

Answer 9

It can be seen to influence those in a suspended sentence with the continued threat of custody for future law breaking.
Examples incl. imprisonment, bodily injury, strikes and boycotts. Prisons use this with the threat of loss of liberty.

Question 10

Name the 4 agencies of external social control.

Answer 10

1. Police: powers to stop commerce search, rest, detain and question suspects
2. The CPS: can charge a suspect and prosecute them in court
3. Judges and magistrates: powers to bail, remand and sentence

4.The prison service: detain prisoners and punish prisoners’ misbehaviours

Question 11

What is Control Theory?

Answer 11

The form of theory that argues why people commit crime as a result of insufficient attachment to commitment to others.

Control theorists’ answer is that people conform because they are controlled by their bonds to society.

Question 12

What did Social Bond Theory suggest was necessary to make someone believe committing crime was wrong?

Answer 12

• An attachment to people
• sensitivity for others
• Commitments to social enterprises
• Involvement in law abiding activities and social situations
• Belief in the values of society

Question 13

Where can the aims of sentencing be found?

Answer 13

Section 42 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003

Question 14

What are the six aims of punishment?

Answer 14

Retribution, rehabilitation, deterrence, public protection/incapacitation, reparation, and denunciation

Question 15

What is retribution? and how does it link with right realism?

Answer 15

an element of revenge in wanting to ensure the offender gets what they deserve a sufficient measure of justice is reached, also known as ‘just desserts”

Right realists believe that tough control and punishments are the only way to stop criminal trends.

Question 16

Give examples of punishments that meet the aim of retribution?

Answer 16

Mandatory life sentence for murder and increasing punishments for hate crimes

Question 17

What is rehabilitation?
include its main focus and assumption:

Answer 17

Reforming offenders so they can move back into society.
focus: Altering the behaviour of an offender to prevent them reoffending.
assumption: Crime is a result of free will and rational choice, meaning something can be done about it

Question 18

Give an example a of punishments that meets the aim of rehabilitation?

Answer 18

Community sentences (e.g. probation orders) because they involve conditions such as work, education, or treatments for addictions

Question 19

What is the Drug Treatment and Testing Order?

Answer 19

A punishment brought in to rehabilitate offenders committing crime as a result of drugs by supervising them to stop their drug use

Question 20

Which criminological theory does rehabilitation link to and why?

Answer 20

Individualistic theories - rehabilitation uses individualistic treatments (e.g. anger management) that focus on getting rid of undesirable behaviours and promoting desirable ones

Question 21

What is deterrence?

Answer 21

Attempting to discourage criminality through the use of punishment

Question 22

What is individual deterrence?
give an example:

Answer 22

Encouraging the offender to not reoffend by putting them in prison or giving the threat of imprisonment.
example: Suspended sentences provide the threat of imprisonment if reoffending occurs

Question 23

Which criminological theory does individual deterrence link to?

Answer 23

Social learning theory because it labels prisons as ‘universities of crime’ where offenders can learn from other criminals - explains high recidivism

Question 24

What is general deterrence?

Answer 24

Preventing potential offenders by making an example of someone else

Question 25

What can weaken the effectiveness of general deterrence?

Answer 25

The fact that punishments are imposed on someone else, so it’s not always perceived as a threat

Question 26

How is Marxism linked to deterrence?

Answer 26

Marxists argue that sentences are given to control the working class - they work as a general deterrence

Question 27

How does the labelling theory link to denunciation?

Answer 27

Labelling offenders could lead to self-fulfilling prophecy which would cause more crime (danger of denunciation).

Question 28

The sentencing framework allows courts to apply which four basic types of sentencing?

Answer 28

-prison
-community service
-fines
-discharges

Question 29

What are life sentences?

Answer 29

The most serious punishment a UK court can give for serious offences (e.g. murder).
The judge sets the minimum time an offender must spend in prison before they can be considered for release by the parole board.
In serious cases, a person may be given a whole life term, which means they will never be released

Question 30

How does functionalism link to denunciation?

Answer 30

Functionalists see social control as a way to achieve solidarity in society strengthens social cohesion by setting acceptable boundaries for crime

Question 31

What is the aim of public protection? How does it relate to right realism?

Answer 31

To keep the public safe from the harm of dangerous criminals.
Right realism argues that public protection is needed because of weak social constraints, so more strict social control is needed to reduce crime

Question 32

What is incapacitation? provide examples of: restrictive orders achieving incapacitation

Answer 32

Prevents future crime by keeping offenders from exercising freedom.
e.g - Long prison sentences, curfews, electronic tagging

Question 33

What is the aim of reparation?

Answer 33

The offender provides compensation for the victim and/or society for they damage caused as a result of their crime

Question 34

Give an examples of how the aim of reparation can be met

Answer 34

Reparation for the victim - sum of money Reparation for society - community order

Question 35

What is one example of a direct reparation scheme?

Answer 35

Restorative justice: which allows offenders and victims to meet together and discuss the crime

Question 36

Which criminological theory does the aim of reparation link to and why?

Answer 36

Links to left realism as the punishments provide practical measures and long-term impacts to reduce crime

Question 37

What is denunciation?

Answer 37

Reinforcing moral and ethical codes (boundary maintenance)

Question 38

What are indeterminate sentences?

Answer 38

(now abolished) set a minimum time the offender must serve in prison, they have no automatic right to be released after the minimum time has been served.
The parole board will decide if the offender is suitable to be released on licence

Question 39

Does prison meet the aims of rehabilitation?

Answer 39

-success rate of rehabilitation programmes is low
- recidivism rates are high.
- only about 25% of offenders get a job after being released from prison
- not successful

Question 40

What are determinate sentences?

Answer 40

A sentence with a fixed length.
not all of the sentence is served in prison

e.g (if the sentence is 12 months+ the offender will serve half the time in prison and the second half in the community on licence)

Question 41

What are suspended sentences?

Answer 41

-offender is given a prison sentence but does not go directly to prison
- can be suspended for up to 2 years-
-court may also impose requirements, failure to follow these requirements will send the offender to prison

Question 42

Does prison meet the aims of retribution?

Answer 42

Could argue that offenders get their “just desserts” but it is hard to reach a consensus on what a suitable sentence should be for a particular offence. also prison is not the harsh experience it is supposed to be.

Question 43

Does prison meet the aims of deterrence?

Answer 43

Recidivism rates show re-offending for adults is between 50 and 60% and as high as 89% for young offenders in the first 2 years of release - not successful as a deterrence

Question 44

Does prison meet the aims of incapacitation?

Answer 44

-it does work as offenders given life sentences are kept off the streets, which means that they aren’t committing crimes
-but most crime goes unpunished, so offenders aren’t being incapacitated.
-incapacitation is temporary.
-prisons act as universities of crime

Question 45

Does prison meet the aims of reparation?

Answer 45

There has been some encouraging success with programmes such as restorative justice both abroad and in the UK

Question 46

Does community sentencing meet the aims of retribution?

Answer 46

all community sentences includes punishment and retribution
e.g. curfews and exclusion orders.

Doing unpaid work in high vis vests = naming and shaming

Question 47

Does community sentencing meet the aims of deterrence?

Answer 47

Use of community sentencing has nearly halved since 2006 -

-used for 9% of offences.
-limited use means it doesn’t act as a deterren

Question 48

Does community sentencing meet the aims of incapacitation?

Answer 48

Don’t lock people up - don’t incapacitate offenders.

However, breaching a community sentence may send the offender to prison

Question 49

Does community sentencing meet the aims of rehabilitation?

Answer 49

Are successful in changing behaviour when used instead of a short prison sentence

• lower recidivism rates than prison

Question 50

Does community sentencing meet the aims of reparation?

Answer 50

Reparation can include unpaid work to repair damage to a victim’s property or the whole community

e.g. clearing wasteland. often seen as ‘soft justice’

Question 51

Do financial penalties work?

Answer 51

-Lots of fines don’t get paid due to being cancelled
-It is concluded that there is no realistic chance of collection
-Not an effective method of deterrence, retribution or rehabilitation

Question 52

Do discharges work?

Answer 52

-They are usually successful
-They act as a deterrent to many people whom the experience of going to court is enough for them to change their behaviour
- appear to meet their punishment aim