custodial sentencing

• custodial sentencing - holding criminals in a secure facility

  prison

  institution

  psychiatric hospital
• 4 aims of custodial sentencing

  deterrence, incapacitation, retribution, rehabilitation
• deterrence - stop criminals from reoffending and example to other members of society
• incapacitation - protection of society from criminal's actions behaviour while in prison
• retribution - providing the victim and the society with a sense of justice

  criminals have paid for their crime
• rehabilitation- changing behaviour by learning new skills and behaviour therapy
• 3 psychological effects of custodial sentencing

  depression, institutionalisation,deindivuation
• depression - feelings of helplessness and high levels of stress, self harm and even suicide
• institutionalisation- prisoners adapt to the prison environment and their routines and after release struggle to adjust to life outside
• deindividuation- can strip prisoners of their sense of socialised individual identity which can lead to aggression
• recidivism is when an offender reoffends after release, this is due to instituionalisation or developing pro-criminal attitudes
• POSITIVE OF CUSTODIAL SENTENCING

  members of wider society think giving offenders long custodial sentencing is appropriate even though it is a difficult prison environment

  it provides suitable retribution for the victims
• 2020 study on custodial sentencing

  77% of inmates reoffend over 18 years

  less than 6 months at 84.9%

  more than 4 years - 32.2%
• 2020 study findings 


  short sentences not enough to deter or reform
• costs 42,000 pounds to imprison one person
• the implications of differential association theory says custodial sentencing may be counter productive and putting large numbers of criminals reinforce pro criminal attitudes and the sharing of criminal skills
• behaviour modification - based on behaviourism

  idea that desirable behaviours can be learnt

  non offending behaviours can be reinforced
• principles used as main technique in prisons?

  operant condtioning, main priniciples of reinforcement and punishment applied in prison using token economy systems