🔒 Protection
A dangerous person is kept away from the public. Example: a violent offender is sent to prison. Strength: people are safe while the offender is locked up. Weakness: it ends when they are released, and it does not change the person.
Peace and Conflict: Key Ideas » Punishment: Aims and Types
What you'll learn this session
Study time: 30 minutes
Edexcel spec: Paper 1, 3.5
- The five aims of punishment: protection, deterrent, retribution, reform and reparation
- The main types of punishment and which aims each serves best
- Restorative justice and how young offenders are treated in the UK
- Humanist views of punishment, and the debate about whether prison works
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Unlock This CourseWhy do we punish people?
When someone commits a crime, the state may punish them. But punishment is not just one idea. There are five different aims, or reasons, and each looks at the offender in a different way. A punishment may try to do more than one at once.
Key terms:
- Punishment: something unpleasant given to an offender because they broke the law.
- Protection: keeping the public safe from the offender.
- Deterrent: putting the offender, and other people, off committing crime.
- Retribution: the offender gets what they deserve for what they did.
- Reform: helping the offender to change so they do not offend again. It is also called rehabilitation.
- Reparation: making up for the harm done to the victim or the community.
- Restorative justice: a way of dealing with crime in which the offender meets the victim.
The five aims of punishment
⚠️ Deterrent
The punishment is meant to put people off. Example: a driver is banned from the road, so others think twice about speeding. Strength: it may stop crimes before they happen. Weakness: many offenders do not expect to be caught, so they do not think about the punishment.
⚖️ Retribution
The offender pays for what they did. It is about justice, not about the future. Example: a long prison sentence for a serious assault. Strength: victims and families may feel that justice has been done. Weakness: it can feel like revenge, and it does not help the offender to change.
🌱 Reform
The offender is helped to change. Example: a prisoner takes courses to learn a trade or gets help with an addiction. Strength: if it works, there are fewer crimes in the future. Weakness: it takes time and money, and it only works if the offender is willing to change.
Reparation
The offender makes up for the harm. Example: an offender who damaged a wall has to repair it, or has to pay money to the victim. Strength: the victim or community gets something back. Weakness: some harm cannot be put right, such as the loss of a loved one.
Types of punishment
Courts in the UK have a choice of punishments, and they pick one to fit the crime and the offender.
- Imprisonment: the offender is held in prison for a set time. It serves protection best, because the public are safe while the offender is inside. It also acts as retribution, and it may be a deterrent. Prisons can offer courses and training for reform.
- Fines: the offender pays money. A fine works as a deterrent and as retribution for smaller crimes. A fine is paid to the state. A separate order to pay the victim compensation is reparation.
- Community service: unpaid work for the community, such as clearing waste ground. It is best for reparation, because the offender gives something back, and it can help with reform because the offender stays in their normal life and learns work habits.
Other punishments exist too: suspended sentences (a prison term that is only served if the offender offends again or breaks the court's conditions), curfews and tags (the offender must stay home at set times, checked by an electronic tag) and driving bans.
Restorative justice
In restorative justice, the offender meets the victim. The victim can explain how the crime affected them, and the offender hears it and may say sorry. It is a good example of reparation and reform. Offenders often have to face the real effects of what they did. Victims can get answers and a feeling of being heard. But a victim must never be forced to take part, and some offenders may not be sincere.
Young offenders in the UK
Young people who break the law are treated differently from adults.
- The age of criminal responsibility is the age at which a child can be charged with a crime. It is 10 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and 12 in Scotland.
- In England and Wales, young offenders usually go to youth courts rather than adult courts.
- The stress is on reform. The idea is that young people are still growing up and can change, so the aim is to stop them becoming adult criminals.
Non-religious attitudes to punishment
Humanists do not base their views on God's laws. They judge punishment by its results. Protecting people and reforming offenders matter more than retribution for its own sake. They also think society should deal with the causes of crime, such as poverty and lack of opportunity, as well as punishing it. Many religious people agree with some of this. Many religions teach justice and also stress forgiveness and a chance to change. Religious views differ, so you will meet the views of each religion in its own lessons.
Does prison work?
✅ It works because...
it protects the public while the offender is inside, it gives victims a sense of justice, and it may put people off crime.
❌ It does not work because...
many prisoners reoffend after release, prison can bring offenders into contact with other criminals, and it may do little to deal with the causes of crime. Prison is also expensive, and community punishments or reform programmes may do more to change a person.
The answer depends on the aim. Prison is good for protection, but weaker for reform. That is why courts often use other punishments as well.
Common mistakes
- Mixing up deterrent (puts people off) with retribution (the offender gets what they deserve). One looks to the future, the other to what was done.
- Saying reform and reparation are the same. Reform helps the offender to change. Reparation makes up for the harm to the victim.
- Naming a punishment without saying which aim it serves. Always link the two.
- Thinking humanists have no views on punishment. They do: they care about results.
Exam-style question
(a) Identify three aims of punishment. [3 marks] (Paper 1, AO1)
(b) Outline two types of punishment. [4 marks] (Paper 1, AO1)
(c) Explain why some people think prison does not work. [6 marks] (Paper 1, AO1 and AO2)
(d) 'The main aim of punishment should be to reform the offender.' Evaluate this statement, showing you have considered different points of view. In your answer you should refer to at least one religion. [12 marks] (Paper 1, AO1 and AO2)
Model answer
(a) 1. Protection (1) 2. Deterrent (1) 3. Reparation (1). Retribution or reform would also be accepted.
(b) Imprisonment is when an offender is held in prison (1), which keeps the public safe and punishes the offender (1). Community service is unpaid work for the community (1), which allows the offender to make up for the harm they caused (1).
(c) Some people think prison does not work because many prisoners commit crimes again after they are released. This means prison has not reformed them, so the public is not safer in the long run. Prison can also put offenders in contact with other criminals, which may make them more likely to offend. Prison may do little to deal with the causes of crime, such as poverty or addiction, so the offender returns to the same problems. Finally, prison is expensive, and some people think that money would be better spent on reform programmes or community punishments. Humanists, for example, judge punishment by its results, so if prison does not stop reoffending, they would say it is not working. (Level 2: several developed reasons.)
(d) Plan. For: reform may mean fewer crimes in future, so there are fewer victims; it gives the offender a chance to change and become a useful member of society; young offenders especially can change; many religions teach forgiveness and a second chance. Against: protection comes first if the offender is dangerous; victims may feel justice needs retribution; deterrent matters because it may stop crime before it starts; reform does not work if the offender will not change; reparation is important for victims. Religion: add a teaching from your own religion on justice or forgiveness, and show whether it supports reform or retribution. Contrast it with a humanist view that results matter most. Possible conclusion: reform is a very important aim, as it is the best way to cut reoffending, but it cannot be the only aim. A dangerous offender must also be kept from the public, so reform should be the main aim for most offenders, but not for all.
Exam tip
In (d), name an aim and say what it does in practice. 'Reform helps offenders change, so there are fewer victims' scores higher than 'reform is good'.