What Role Does Sanctions Play In Deterring A Would-Be Criminal?

There are several criminological theories in play based on a variety of perspectives as to the causes of criminal behavior. For this assignment, I have chosen to address the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and how it coincides with Travis Hirschi’s Social Control Theory. Based on the elements in Hirschi’s Social Control Theory I will discuss how the Big Brothers Big Sisters program is beneficial in deterring the youths of today from participating in deviant behavior and becoming the criminals of tomorrow. To better the comprehension of their coexistence, I will first discuss the elements of the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and the Social Control Theory individually and then combine their individual elements to explain how they can effectively work together to deter crime.

Some careful scholarship has already been directed at the issue of the relationship between the deterrent effect of sanction threats and criminal propensity. For several reasons that we will discuss at greater length in the next section of the article, however, we think this important issue is still unsettled and warrants additional research. First, the findings from these studies have been contradictory—some report a weak deterrent effect for those least prone to crime whereas some a strong effect. Moreover, sometimes the magnitude of the deterrent effect in different groups varies for the certainty and severity of punishment. Second, many of these studies have relied on student samples, relatively minor offending, and outcome variables of self-reported intentions to

Society has developed a series of programs meant to assist individuals in being able to successfully integrate and re-integrate the social order. Through being subjected to such programs criminals and potential criminals gain a better understanding of their role in society and of the fact that they need to adopt a lawful attitude in order to experience positive results in life. The fact that they are encouraged to get actively involved in social activities influences individuals in adopting lifestyles that are in accordance with the law. This basically means that potential criminals are unlikely to engage in criminal acts as long as their needs are met and as long as someone provides them with constructive activities that take up most of their time.

“When a great democracy is destroyed, it will not be because of enemies from without but rather because of enemies from within” said Joseph McCarthy, on February 9, 1950 (Enemies from Within). McCarthy may have missed the mark in claiming that communist infiltration was the enemy from within, but his statement was accurate: the rise of demagogues can erode the rights and freedoms upon which democracy is built and without which they could not gain power. From the 1920’s on, ‘red baiting’ had produced anti-communist sentiments in the American populace that had largely eradicated most communist organizations in the United States (Hillstrom 17). The culmination of over thirty years of hysteria over communist infiltration bred an atmosphere of suspicion and agitation. Combined with the Alger Hiss conviction and the Hollywood blacklisting period under the House Un-American Affairs Committee, the 1940’s and early 50s represent a climax of the Red Scare (Hillstrom 36). The Truman administration’s “Loyalty Order” requiring the FBI to investigate government employees suspected of disloyalty, and actions like it created fear of being labeled as disloyal and bred a populace that was inclined to accept the word of authority. The emergence of McCarthyism was the failing of society’s core institutions: the entertainment industry (satisfying the people), the government (serving the people), and the media (informing the people). It is easy to stand up for the cause of justice when the

Deterrence theory of crime is a method in which punishment is used to dissuade people from committing crimes. There are two types of deterrence: general and specific. General deterrence is punishment to an individual to stop the society as a whole from committing crimes. In other word, it is using the punishment as an example to “scare” society from precipitating in criminal acts. Under general deterrence, publicity is a major part of deterrence. Crime and their punishments being showing in the media or being told person to person can be used to deter crime. Specific deterrence is punishment to the individual to stop that individual from committing other crimes in the future. This type of deterrence is used to teach the individual a

Control theory, Anomie theory and Strain theory provide very different explanations of why people commit crimes based upon assumptions about how humans function. Control theory suggests that humans are naturally drawn to breaking the law. Humans are driven to fulfill their needs and desires. Crime provides one method by which humans can reach their goals. Control theorists would thus ask why everyone does not turn to crime to meet their wants and needs. The question shifts from the typical why do people commit crime to why do people not commit crime (Cullen and Agnew, 2011). Hirschi suggest that crime and social bonds are linked, such that crime occurs in absence of a strong social bond. The four elements of the social bonds are

Retribution, deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation are all tactics used by the criminal justice system and its officials, to prevent individuals from committing crimes and combat the behavior of individuals who have committed crimes. Retribution involves an effort to ensure that an offender's punishment is equivalent not only with the crime but also with his or her moral blameworthiness and previous criminal record (Masters). From a Christian point of view, I believe that this is a moral form of punishment. This form of sentencing is fair, because it takes in consideration the person's previous criminal record. If a person makes a wrong choice and he or she is apprehended by a police officer, I don't believe they should be punished

An “I told you so” echoes from the grave of Neil Postman as a Reality TV star lead the polls for the GOP primary nomination in the 2016 presidential race. Meanwhile, a symbol of the most turbulent times in American history was recently removed from a state capitol and designated for museum status. Today’s latest social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, has assisted the Internet ‘steady growth and influence of society for over twenty years now. Three authors, Neil Postman, Daniel Solove, and Walter Lippmann have explored how various media and symbols have shaped society through history to today. Postman, in Amusing Ourselves to Death, Public Discourse in Age of Show Business saw the dangers in the medium of television turning the serious subjects of religion, the news, and particularly politics into forms of entertainment. In his book, future of reputation, David Solove argues, the law must meet the challenge to address these ever-changing technologies’ effect on one’s reputation and strive to protect the privacy while ensuring the freedom of speech. In the book, Public Opinion, author Walter Lippmann, explores how symbols are planted by authority figures to corral the public into their camp. While each author takes a different approach, each provides insights into a changing world and a route for an informed society to achieve better citizenship.

Severe punishments, such as long stints in prison and the death penalty, are designed to pose as threats or warnings to those who consider committing a crime. It also seems that, theoretically, more severe punishments, such as longer prison sentences, would help deter crime at least by keeping the offender locked away, thus “deterring” them from committing more crime. Certainty of punishment would serve to deter potential offenders with the threat of a definite, undesirable penalty, should they be caught and convicted. Certainty and severity of punishment both play on an offender’s sense of self-preservation, in hopes that potential offenders may not commit crimes to protect themselves from undesirable consequences. Promptness of punishment theoretically serves to deter crime by playing on not only the potential offender’s self-interest, but on the idea that public attitudes against the offender will be more severe soon after the crime is committed.

The four main goals of the criminal sanction in the United States are retribution, deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation. Carried out through incarceration, intermediate sanctions, probation, and death are goals of the criminal sanction. Penal codes differ if the permitted sentences are indeterminate, determinate, or mandatory. Each sentence has an assumption about the criminal sanction. Judges consider discretion in fashioning sentences for factors of the crime, the offenders aggravating circumstances. They sentence people by their attitude, what they did before the court date and the value of the judges. The system may treat wrongdoers unequally because of racial discrimination.

1. Akers and Sellers chapter 7: Compare and contrast the predictions made by labeling theorists and deterrence theorists with respect to the utility of criminal punishment.

Set in the 1950s, Senator McCarthy was bringing public charges that often ruined lives of those he accused of subversion. His tactic of ‘blacklisting’ automatically denied individuals unemployment in a particular field, and the majority of the critics in the media were often silent for fear of the potential for being ‘blacklisted.’ The key to McCarthy’s success was his exploitation of the public hysteria over communism; terrified people were willing to trade liberty for safety. Edward Murrow was the exception because he took a proactive way to confront McCarthy on CBS news with the help of Fred Friendly and other crewmembers by publicly confronting McCarthy via live television. Murrow opened his first show, See It Now, with “We are not descended from fearful men- not from men who feared to write, to speak, to associate, and to defend causes that were, for the moment, unpopular…we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.”

Punishment given to offenders acts as an example for society and deters others from committing the same crime. Punishment serves as proof and as a model to the rest of society that criminal behavior will have consequences and can be seen as an educational tool. When using punishment as a threat, warning or intimidation tactic for the prevention of evil, it is formally referred to as general deterrence. “General deterrence stems from the perceived threat or fear of the inherent elements of punishment itself, not through some indirect process. Examples of general deterrence from fear of direct sanctions are refraining from speeding for fear of a fine or in my argument, refraining from a felony for fear of incarceration” (Williams & Hawkins, 547). By presenting

In contrast to the psychiatric model, the social approach has its focus on the interactions that take place between the family and society. Here, the emphasis is put on the interaction between the family and the society, which exerts pressure. The defect does not lay in the individual, but is within the system. The stress that society places on the family increases tension which can leave the family vulnerable to dysfunction. Frequent stress causes friction such as financial problems and a socially isolated life.(Cicchetti & Calrson, 1991) . The Control Theory of Delinquency suggests that delinquent acts are a product of a disconnection between the individual and the society. The lack of social support that places parents into a high risk category for abuse is a broken bond between the individual and the

Most people do not engage in criminal activities due to the controls that are placed. According to law.jrank.org, the control theory focuses on “factors that restrain the individual from engaging in crime.” When there is direct control such as police officers monitoring crimes and family members defining rules such as who the person can engage with or not then it can limit criminal activities. On the other hand, when people are directly monitored their behavior is much different compared to when they are not monitored. According to law.jrank.org, stake in conformity is also a restraint to crime. People who have a lot to lose will less likely to engage in criminal activities. There have been studies that state that people who care about their