Philosophical Theories of Punishment

This assignment delves into the various philosophical theories surrounding punishment. It examines theories like incapacitation, deterrence, retribution, and rehabilitation, discussing their strengths and weaknesses. The essay also explores alternative approaches to correcting behavior, such as restorative justice and probation. Ultimately, it seeks to analyze how different philosophical viewpoints shape our understanding and application of punishment within the criminal justice system.

Running head: THEORIES OF PUNISHMENT
Theories of Punishment
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary:
The intention of this report is to highlight the benefits of punishments in deterring crime in a
civilized society. However it has been emphasized that while evaluating the method for
punishments to various offenders criminal organizations are often faced with ethical dilemmas.
The report highlights on the importance of different philosophical theories in deterring crime and
reinforcing moral behavior. The report is commissioned to examine the alternative methods in
correcting behavior.

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Table of Contents
Introduction:..................................................................................................................................3
Discussion:......................................................................................................................................3
Benefits of punishment in deterring crimes:...........................................................................3
Issues faced by criminal organizations in making ethical decisions:....................................3
Philosophical theories in justifying punishment and in responding to moral behavior:....4
Alternatives in correcting behavior:........................................................................................5
Conclusion:.....................................................................................................................................5
References:.....................................................................................................................................6

3THEORIES OF PUNISHMENT
Introduction:
Since time immemorial the different forms of punishments has been viewed from
organizational perspectives (Ellis, 2014). In the presence of various forms of punishment the
society has been depending upon the criminal organizations of the country in deterring crime
from the very beginning (DeLisi & Vaughn, 2014). With the development of various
philosophical theories societies have understood the importance of punishment in deterring
crimes by restoring peace and justice in a modern world.
Discussion:
Benefits of punishment in deterring crimes:
Since time immemorial systems of incarceration and sentencing has widely affected the
criminal justice system with the inclusion of various forms of punishments. The forms of
punishments can be mentioned as deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, retribution and
restoration. However modern authors have emphasized on the point that the concept of
punishment is effective when there develops a fear in the mind of the offenders (Lee & McCrary,
2017). According to ancient scholars punishment serves as a purpose to put an end to the
criminal behavior of the offenders so that the same crime is not committed again (Nagin, 2013).
Punishment serves as an example for others in order to prevent other from committing offence.
Issues faced by criminal organizations in making ethical decisions:
In the modern era with an increase in knowledge about the subject matter of ethics
individuals have increased their sensitivity in judging the issues relating to right and wrong,
ethical and unethical (Sepielli, 2013). In this regard it is noteworthy to mention here that

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questioning the principles and activities of the criminal justice system has also been encouraged.
The ethical issues can be termed as privatization of correctional centers, death penalty and the
punishment of special groups. With the privatization of correctional homes the most important
issue which arises is that with the large scale privatization of correctional facilities whether these
corrections would become a profitable enterprise in the process (Funk, McGeer & Gollwitzer,
2014). With the imposition of death penalty several ethical problems arises because in case of
heinous crimes no other alternatives are present to punish he offender. In case of punishment of
special groups like juveniles and mentally unstable offenders authors have argued that
correctional centers are not the place for the juveniles and mentally disabled due to the absence
of adequate facilities in improving their conditions (Nagin, 2013).
Philosophical theories in justifying punishment and in responding to moral behavior:
In recent world with the origination of various kinds of punishments the philosophical
theories can be emphasized as:-
 Incapacitation.
 Deterrence.
 Retribution.
 Rehabilitation.
The theory of incapacitation has been introduced in order to prevent future crime which
involves the process of getting rid of the criminals away from the society (Ellis, 2014). The
theory of deterrence emphasizes on the part that in order to prevent future criminal activities fear
has to be developed in the minds of the civilians. The retributive theory highlights the fact that
the purpose of punishment is to make justification of the moral requirement of the guilty (DeLisi

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& Vaughn, 2014). In order to prevent future crime and the number of offenders the rehabilitation
theory was developed whose focus was to contribute to the establishment of various correctional
centers in order to reform the offenders.
In this regard the theories which categorize punishment as an inappropriate response
towards moral behavior. The theories of moral ethics which from the very beginning has been
trying to reflect light on viewing punishment as disproportionate response to impoverished moral
behavior (Funk, McGeer & Gollwitzer, 2014). The theories can be emphasized as-
Utilitarianism, Aristotelian, Stoic Virtue Ethics, Intuitionism.
Alternatives in correcting behavior:
The theory of restoration serves as an alternative to the other philosophizes of
punishment. The restoration theory helps to restore peace in the society by involving both the
offender and the victim in a mutual discussion where the offender takes the responsibility of the
actions of the crime he has committed by initiating restitution to the victim (Lee & McCrary,
2017). The principle theories of restorative justice have been applied to the study of criminal
justice to a large extent.
However with the introduction of the concepts of probation and parole the aim of
transforming the offenders has proved to be beneficial. Probation can be granted to an offender if
the consequence of the crime is not that serious (Sepielli, 2013). However parole can be granted
when the offender has served in prison for a certain period of time and has been released back to
the society due to his good conduct.

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Conclusion:
In the conclusion it can be stated that with the introduction of various philosophical
theories the society as a whole could identify the importance of such theories. In the modern
world with the introduction of various rehabilitation and restoration methods the interests of the
offenders has been protected from being violated.

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References:
DeLisi, M., & Vaughn, M. G. (2014). Foundation for a temperament-based theory of antisocial
behavior and criminal justice system involvement. Journal of Criminal Justice, 42(1), 10-
25.
Ellis, A. (2014). Theories of Punishment. In Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal
Justice (pp. 5184-5192). Springer New York.
Funk, F., McGeer, V., & Gollwitzer, M. (2014). Get the message: Punishment is satisfying if the
transgressor responds to its communicative intent. Personality and Social Psychology
Bulletin, 40(8), 986-997.
Lee, D. S., & McCrary, J. (2017). The deterrence effect of prison: Dynamic theory and evidence.
In Regression Discontinuity Designs: Theory and Applications (pp. 73-146). Emerald
Publishing Limited.
Nagin, D. S. (2013). Deterrence: A review of the evidence by a criminologist for
economists. Annu. Rev. Econ., 5(1), 83-105.
Sepielli, A. (2013). Moral uncertainty and the principle of equity among moral
theories. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 86(3), 580-589.