Survey of Justice and Security - AJS/502
March 17, 2014
Arnold Wicker
Punishment versus Rehabilitation, there has been many debates on the effectiveness of punishment compared to the effectiveness of rehabilitation of convicted offenders in prison and under community supervision. Punishment is defined as a penalty that is imposed on an individual for doing something wrong. The term rehabilitation is defined as a way to help somebody to return to good health or a normal life by providing training or therapy (StudyMode). If an individual commits a crime serious enough to warrant incarceration, then the individual is sent to prison as a form of punishment. While incarcerated the individual may have the opportunity to receive rehabilitation services. Does it mean that the individual will be rehabilitated? Is punishment or rehabilitation more effective in combating crime? I will disclose my findings in this paper.
Effectiveness of Rehabilitation
As stated by Miceli (2009) rehabilitating criminals has become a highly debated topic throughout the nation. With the majority of criminals being repeat offenders, the correctional institution has resorted to making rehabilitation a top priority. Research over the last twenty five years has shown that some programs are more effective than others (Miceli, 2009).
The effects of correctional interventions on recidivism have important public safety implications when offenders are released from probation or prison. Hundreds of studies have been conducted on those effects, some investigating punitive approaches and some investigating rehabilitation treatments. Systematic reviews of those studies, displays a remarkable consistency in their findings. Supervision and sanctions, show modest mean reductions in recidivism and, in some instances, have the opposite effect and increase re-offense rates. This means that recidivism effects found in studies of
Cited: Dove, B. (2012, September). Punishment vs. Rehabilitation. Retrieved from StudyMode website: http://www.studymode.com/essays/Punishment-Versus-Rehabilitation-1252655.html Gendreau, P Petersilia, J. (2011, October). Beyond the prison bubble. Retrived from the National Institute of Justice website: http://nij.gov/journals/268/Pages/prison-bubble.aspx Scott-Hayward, C StudyMode (2010, July). Punishment vs. Rehabilitation. Retrieved from the StudyMode website: http://www.studymode.com/essays/Punishment-Vs-Rehabilitation-362812.html