Individualistic

• What is psychoanalysis and what individualistic theory has this policy been developed from?

  • Founded by Sigmund Freud who believed that people could be cured of psychological problems by making their unconscious thought conscious, thereby gaining insight into their thoughts and motivations
  • the aim is to release repressed emotions. It is a form of treatment for mental disorders
• Key principles of psychoanalysis

  • Traumatic experience in childhood results in repressed emotions
  • Repressed emotions result in the unconscious mind influencing the conscious mind. This means that the individual is unable to control their actions, resulting in criminal activity
• What does psychoanalysis involve?

  The analyst allows free association so the patient talks about what ever enters their mind. This involves lying down on the couch and facing away from the analyst
• Does psychoanalysis work?

  It is least favoured in contemporary approaches to working with offenders. It is time consuming and is unlikely to produce quick answers. The nature of psychoanalysis creates a power imbalance between therapist and client that could raise ethical issues
• Explain one crime control policy that has been informed by individualistic theories

  Psychoanalysis. This treatment allow that patient to verbalise their thoughts through a variety of methods, aiming to access their unconscious and repressed thoughts that are believed to have led to criminal activity. The therapist is essential to the treatment as they aim to help the offender turn to law-abiding thoughts. However, there have been criticisms that the therapist may unduly influence the patient.
• Explain one crime control policy that has been informed by individualistic theories

  Behaviour modification. This policy aims to extinguish undesirable behaviours and promote desirable ones. The underpinning principle is that behaviours that are reinforced are strengthened whereas behaviours that are punished are weakened. A token economy system is an example of this, where a token is given for a desired action that is later exchanged for a ‘treat’. In the short term, this is often successful while the offender remains in prison.