It is based on the humanistic principle that even if an offender commits a crime, he does not cease to be a human being. Philosophical analysis of the theories of punishment in the. Since they are backwardlooking, they are not concerned with the possibility of a person committing a crime. Punishment may also involve various types of informal sanctions by family, peers, and extralegal groups like vigilante committees and paramilitary organizations to promote their own interests. Theories of punishment with special focus on reformative. One may commit a crime either because the temptation of the motive is stronger or. Consider, for example, the case of the elderly man who was once a nazi torturer. Perhaps the most recent endear or to merge psychiatric theory with the problem of the criminal is walter brontbergs crime and the mind.
The utilitarian theory of punishment seeks to punish offenders to discourage, or deter, future wrongdoing. One may for instance want to adopt a mixed method, say, combining a policy of deterrence with a policy of. Theories of punishment can be divided into two general philosophies. Reformative and rehabilitative theories of punishment youtube. A popular reason for punishment is that it gets criminals off the streets and protects the public. Reformative theory law and legal definition uslegal, inc. Retribution and the theory of punishments he idea that retribution, along with prevention of crime t and reformation of convicted criminals, plays a role in the nature and practice of punishment is a common theme in accounts of punishment at least since t.
The practice of punishment, to put the point another way, rests on a plurality of values, not on some one value to the exclusion of all others. Preventive theory was supported by utilitarian law reformers because of its humanising influence on penal law. Retributivist theory focusses on punishment to only those who deserve it. Kaufman i according to the most familiar version tx of the utilitarian theory of punishment, the functions of the practice of punishment are deference and reform. According to this theory, the aim of punishment is to educate or reform the offender himself. In an article written for the new york daily tribuneon capital punishment, marx makes clear enough his understanding of the practice of legal punishment as a whole plainly speaking, and dispensing with all paraphrases, punishment is nothing but a means of society to defend itself against the infraction of its vital conditions, whatever may be their character. See green, thomas hill, lectures on the principles of political obligation, london, 1882 1941, pp. Perspectives on corporal punishment to put the results of the metaanalyses into perspective, i consider the effects of corporal punishment from three different viewpoints. The development of the institution of prison is essentially an outcome of the preventive theory of crime. This theory is in fact a mixture of sentimental and utilitarian motives. Theories of punishment, contain generally policies regarding theories of punishment namely. Reformative theory of punishment academike lawctopus. Theories of punishment legal definition of theories of.
Punishment theories of punishment utilitarian, society, theory. Locke viewed that the people in the state of nature agreed a social contract in order to establish a formal law. Off late however, there has been the reemergence of the retributive theory in a diluted form and this is called as the expiatory theory which was mainly in vogue in ancient india and erstwhile europe. A criminal is the product of the social and economical. Earlier modes of punishment were, deterrent in nature. The strengths and limits of the theory of retributive punishment. These purposes were described in r v swanepoel 1945 ad 444 at 455 as deterrent, preventative, reformative and retributive, in s v rabie 1975 4 sa 855 a at 862 ab reference was made to gordon, criminal law of scotland, 1967 at 50 where it was stated that the retributive theory finds the justification for punishment in a past act, a wrong.
Kants theory of punishment utilitas cambridge core. The utilitarian theory of punishment seeks to punish offenders to discourage. Deterrent theory directs to impose exemplary punishments where reformative theory directs to impose the lesser punishments and stress more on reformation. Reformative theory of punishment is more effective rather. Here is your speech on the reformative theory of punishment. Utilitarian justifications for punishment our first theoretical foray into punishment is the utilitarian perspective. Retributivism is a theory of justice that applies to the provision of rewards and. Clustered sampling technique was applied to identify the sample size for the study. In their view, it is the certainty of law and its severity which has a real effect on offenders. Deterrent, retributive, preventive and reformative. Sep 02, 2014 the concept of penal reform had its birth from the reformative theory of punishment. But from his theoretical project was spun an entire literature of radical criminology, which interprets punishment with the help of the vision marxs theory lends.
Hegel and the unified theory of punishment request pdf. It is sometimes said that what the retributive view really does is to give the definition of punishment whereas the other standard theories give its justification. There are various theories of punishment which are retributive, deterrent, and reformative. Firstly, a kid who falls down and kicks the floor inadvertently. But that is the beginning of a new storythe story of the gradual renewal of a man, the story of his gradual. Punishment is inflicted on a criminal in order to reform or educate him.
In essence, before we call anything punishment, it must meet the above mentioned criteria to differentiate it from what it is not. Economic punishment, 121 incapacitative punishment, 123 corporal punishment, 124 nineteenth century and early twentieth century 1840s to the 1940s 128 economic sanctions, corporal punishment, incapacitative punishment, 2 socialist china from 1949 to the twenty. One may commit a crime either because the temptation of the motive is stronger or because the restrain imposed by character is weaker. Philosophical analysis of the theories of punishment in. Perspectives on the effects of corporal punishment. To be deducted from this assertion is the fact that punishment is administered because of, not in order to as held by utilitarian view.
According to the reformative theory, the aim of punishment is the improvement of the offender himself. Punishment introduces and defends a new unified theory of punishment that brings together multiple purposes such as desert, crime reduction and restoration within one coherent theory that is pluralistic, novel and groundbreaking providing new insights into criminal. For punishment to be meted out, a person must be found guilty. This theory of punishment refers to two different types of deterrence. Under the utilitarian philosophy, laws should be used. Although retributive justice may be applied to rewards and punishments. Reformative theory of punishment pdf download this paper open pdf in browser share email add to. Preventive theory law and legal definition uslegal, inc.
A third theory also emphasizes the desert of the offender, but holds that what offenders deserve is the opportunity to reform. The idea is to remove an offender from society, making it physically impossible or at least very difficult for him or her to commit further crimes against the public while serving a sentence. Submitted to submitted by deterrent theory i do not punish you for stealing the ship, but so that the ship may not be stolen the central cynosure of the theory. A straitlaced purely retributive theory of punishment is as unsatisfactory as a purely consequentialist theory with its counterintuitive conclusions especially as regards punishing the innocent. A sentence may, however, combine utilitarian ideals with retribution. Indiana university press, 1972 social science 401 pages. The preventive theory is founded on the idea of preventing repetition of crime by disabling the offender through measures such as imprisonment, forfeiture, death punishment and suspension of licence. Administration of justice theories of punishment 3. Theories of punishment with special focus on reformative theory neetij rai abstract. Learning theory despite the comprehensiveness of gershoffs 2002 article, there was no discussion about the theoretical underpinnings of corporal punishment as a form of. The retributive theory seeks to punish offenders because they deserve to be punished. Data collection was done in respect of the study specific objectives through data collection methods which include questionnaires and interviews. Theories of punishment legal definition of theories of punishment.
According to this theory, offences are result of a conflict between the interests of. This theory is commonly accepted at the present time, because it is in harmony with the humanitarian sentiments of the. Incapacitation works as long as the offenders remain. The reformative aspect thinks of incorporating humane values into the prison system and the prison officials have to work for the achievement of the same. It holds that the proper aim of criminal procedure is to reform the criminal so that he may become adjusted to the social order. Administration of justice theories of punishment,free. A crime is committed as a result of the conflict between the character and the motive of the criminal. Prison of the time should have a meaning that incorporates the reformative values into it. With present, law should according to reality of society and should able to cover gabs of society with education and different psychic theories, reduce production of crime. What is the difference between deterrent theory and. In addition, we will give voice to some major objections to the utilitarian theory. Different types of punishments are used for different purposes.
Karl marx wrote little directly on the subject of crime and punishment. The utilitarian authors will offer answers to such questions as. The term crime does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,1 though statutory definitions have been provided for. Theory says an offender commits a crime because of some personality defect, or because of psychological factors flowing from his background 1. Feb 28, 2017 modern theory of punishment modern theory of punishment is a combination of all the theories discussed above. The theories of punishment philosophers differ on why there should be punishment, the basis that warrants punishment as stilt and foundation. The term crime does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,1 though statutory definitions have been provided for certain purposes. Punishmentretribution, rehabilitation, and deterrence. It is usually assumed, moreover, that there is no particular need to examine the case for ascribing reform and deference functions to.
The guilty deserve to be punished, and no moral consideration relevant to punishment outweighs the offenders criminal desert is the philosophy of retributive theory. The concept of penal reform had its birth from the reformative theory of punishment. Punishment, whether legal or divine, needs justification. As hobbes said that in the state of nature people were nasty, brutish and their life was short. Green does what he believes kant ought to have done. Theories of punishment for safe, orderly, peaceful and prosperous society to exist and flourish the following tools of theory are found to be good guides. In other words, the monetary loss of the sufferer is compensated and the criminal has to compensate for the loss. Reformative and rehabilitative theories of punishment. This article contains the difference between deterrent theory and reformative theory. Punishment can be used as a method of reducing the incidence of criminal behavior either by deterring the potential offenders or by incapacitating and preventing them from repeating the offence of by reforming them into lawabiding citizens. As regards retributive theory critics point out that punishment in itself is not a remedy for the mischief. At times, severe punishments like death by stoning or.
Nov 27, 2018 a different theory is that offenders take an unfair advantage over nonoffenders and punishment restores the just balance of benefits and burdens. This course on the fairness of justice will take you deeper into the world of law. The retributive theory this theory holds that punishment should be administered simply because an offence has been committed, for which the offender deserves to be punished hospers, 1967. May 06, 2010 the progress of civilization has resulted in the change in the theory, method and motive of punishment. Theories of punishment with special focus on reformative theory. Deterrent theorypunishment is before all things deterrent and the chief end of the law of crime is to make the evildoer an example and warning to all who are like minded with him. Reformative theory law and legal definition the reformative theory of punishment emphasises on reformation of offenders through the method of individualisation. In this theory, the behaviour directed at the criminal shows him the consideration due to an individual and not conduct analogous to treatment of object and. The reasoning may be to condition a child to avoid selfendangerment, to impose social conformity in. Not only to prevent the wrongdoer from doing a wrong, but also to make him an example for others, calculated to curb criminal tendency in others. Theories of punishment and the death penalty george. Short work on reformation with timetotime society to reduce criminals. The modem age seems generally to favour and apply this theory.
Contending that the theory and practice of punishment are inherently linked, tunick draws on a broad range of thinkers, from the radical criticisms of nietzsche, foucault, and some marxist theorists through the sociological theories of durkheim and girard to various philosophical traditions and the law and economics movement. Greens theory of punishment, history of political thought forthcoming. Punishment is the imposition of an undesirable or unpleasant outcome upon a group or individual, meted out by an authority in contexts ranging from child discipline to criminal lawas a response and deterrent to a particular action or behavior that is deemed undesirable or unacceptable. Whats wrong with harmless theories of punishment core. This theory presumes that the adamant and habitual offender can also be changed into a lawabiding citizen by reformation. Retributive theory is based on rights, desert and justice. The following theories of punishment explain how and why justice is doled out to those that deserve it. The reform theory is the most popular theory today.
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