How crime is dealt with in different societies

Last time

Before we start: last time, in Education, you learned these points. Here they are again on one card. Keep them in mind, because today builds on them.

Responding to crime

Societies deal with crime in very different ways: some focus on punishment, others on reform, others on preventing crime before it happens. This lesson covers the agencies of control, the aims of punishment, and ways to prevent crime. It also covers how responses differ between societies.

The criminal justice system

The police investigate crime and arrest suspects. The courts decide guilt and sentence. Prisons and probation services carry out punishment. Together they form the criminal justice system, the formal control of crime. Their decisions can be affected by discretion and bias, so some groups are treated more harshly.

Aims of punishment

Deterrence: to stop the offender and others from committing crime, through fear of punishment. Retribution: to make the offender pay for the harm done. Incapacitation: to stop them offending, for example by prison. Rehabilitation: to reform the offender, through education, training and therapy, so they do not reoffend.

Different societies

Some societies use the death penalty and long sentences; others have abolished the death penalty and focus on rehabilitation. Some use community-based justice, where elders or community courts settle disputes. Laws themselves differ: what is a crime in one society may be legal in another.

Informal control of crime

Families, schools, religion and communities teach norms and watch behaviour, which prevents much crime. Strong bonds to family and school make people less likely to offend: Hirschi's control theory. Where these bonds are weak, crime may rise.

Situational crime prevention

Situational crime prevention reduces the opportunity for crime. Examples: CCTV cameras, better street lighting, locks and alarms, known as target hardening. Criticism: crime may simply move elsewhere, called displacement.

Other approaches

Community policing builds trust between police and local people. Restorative justice brings offenders and victims together, so offenders understand the harm and make amends. Social policies, such as jobs and youth clubs, tackle the causes of crime.

Ways to deal with crime

The main approaches, each with a limitation, for a discuss answer.

Does informal control prevent crime?

For: families and communities teach norms early, and disapproval deters people more than the law. Evidence: control theory shows strong bonds reduce offending. Develop three points, with evidence, and if asked, weigh against formal control.

Mistakes that lose marks

Mistake one: confusing deterrence with retribution. Mistake two: giving only formal control when asked about informal control. Mistake three: naming CCTV without explaining how it prevents crime. The fix: the aim, the method, and how it works.

The full-marks tip

The full-marks tip: for each aim of punishment, say what it is meant to achieve. For prevention, explain how the method reduces crime and its limitation.

On one card

So, on one card: dealing with crime. Keep it for revision.