custodial sentencing

• custodial sentencing

  a convicted offender spending time in prison or another institution that is similar
• four reasons for custodial sentencing

  deterrence, incapacitation, retribution, rehabilitation
• deterrence

  the unpleasant prison experience is designed to out off the individual from engaging in offending behaviour
• general deterrence

  aims to send broad messages to members of a given society that crime will not be tolerated
• individual deterrence

  conditioning through vicarious punishment

  prevent the individual from repeating the same offences in light of their experience
• incapacitation

  the offender is taken out of society to prevent them reoffending as a means of protecting the public
• retribution

  society is enacting revenge for the offence by making the offender suffer and the level of suffering should be proportionate to the severity of the offence
• rehabilitation

  prison should provide opportunities to develop skills and training to make prisoners better adjusted to society
• three psychological effects of custodial sentencing

  stress and depression

  institutionalisation

  prisonisation
• stress and depression

  suicide rates are higher in prison than in the general population the stress of the prison experiences also increases the risk of developing psychological disorders following release
• institutionalisation

  inmates may have become so accustomed to prison life that they are no longer able to function on the outside
• prisonisation

  prisoners are socialised into adopting an inmate code

  behaviour that may be considered as unacceptable in the outside world may be encouraged in prison
• recidivism

  refers to the act of reoffending
• limitation of custodial sentencing

  negative psychological effect on prisoners

  according to the ministry of justice, 119 people killed themselves in prisons in England and Wales in 2016
• strength of custodial sentencing

  provides opportunity for training and treatment

  may offenders access training and education in prison which increases their chances of employment when they are released
• limitation of custodial sentencing

  offenders may learn to become better offenders

  long term offenders may give young offenders tricks to use when they are released

  makes reoffending more likely