Deterrence (penology)
Deterrence in relation to criminal offending is the idea or theory that the threat of punishment will deter people from committing crime and reduce the probability and/or level of offending in society. It is one of five objectives that punishment is thought to achieve; the other four objectives are denunciation, incapacitation (for the protection of society), retribution and rehabilitation.[1]
This article is about a legal theory of justice. For coercion in world politics, see Deterrence theory.
Criminal deterrence theory has two possible applications: the first is that punishments imposed on individual offenders will deter or prevent that particular offender from committing further crimes; the second is that public knowledge that certain offences will be punished has a generalised deterrent effect which prevents others from committing crimes.[2]
Two different aspects of punishment may have an impact on deterrence, the first being the certainty of punishment, by increasing the likelihood of apprehension and punishment, this may have a deterrent effect. The second relates to the severity of punishment; how severe the punishment is for a particular crime may influence behavior if the potential offender concludes that the punishment is so severe, it is not worth the risk of getting caught.
An underlying principle of deterrence is that it is utilitarian or forward-looking. As with rehabilitation, it is designed to change behaviour in the future rather than simply provide retribution or punishment for current or past behaviour.
Categories[edit]
There are two main goals of deterrence theory.
Individual deterrence is the aim of punishment to discourage the offender from criminal acts in the future. The belief is that when punished, offenders recognise the unpleasant consequences of their actions on themselves and will change their behaviour accordingly.
General deterrence is the intention to deter the general public from committing crime by punishing those who do offend. When an offender is punished by, for example, being sent to prison, a clear message is sent to the rest of society that behaviour of this sort will result in an unpleasant response from the criminal justice system. Most people do not want to end up in prison and so they are deterred from committing crimes that might be punished that way.
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Further reading[edit]
To read more about severity of punishment in relation to deterrence, see Mendes, M. & McDonald, M. D., [2001] “Putting Severity of Punishment Back in the Deterrence Package” in Policy Studies Journal, vol. 29, no. 4, p. 588-610, and Moberly, Sir W. H., [1968] The Ethics of Punishment.
To read more about the argument concerning who deterrence is aimed at see Beccaria and Bentham's ideas as presented in Moberly, Sir W. H., [1968] The Ethics of Punishment.
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