Attitude towards the people who commit crimes of different kinds has always been negative from society’s point of view. However, the punishment measures were not always the same and changed over time. Nowadays, illegal action restriction measures and consequences are much more humane than before. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the development of the punishment approaches and identify the correction models to control criminal behaviour.
Southern and Western penal systems significantly differed because Southern manner focused on discipline and hard work, while Western valued education and the concept of community. Pennsylvania made the first changes toward a more humane approach regarding the prisoners. Inmates were working separately and without the possibility to communicate, strictly following the rules and producing goods for the government. (Mitevski, 2019). The Pennsylvanian approach influenced the Auburn system, but it created more profit for the state and required fewer maintenance costs (Mitevski, 2019). Its primary attribute was that prisoners were allowed to work together and be with each other during the daytime, but they would be separated in the cells at night.
As society was progressively developing, their view on the offenders and punishments for them was shifting as well. A few centuries ago, the primary way of punishment was the act of public humiliation, beating or execution. Later the number of violent methods decreased, and the death penalty was used only in the most challenging cases. With the appearance of correction models, the community was gradually moving towards renovations when imprisonment was the predominant method of punishment for crimes. Less severe offences could lead to fines and penalties, while violations such as murder could mean the death penalty.
People strived for different ideals and demanded specific changes in the system. It resulted in the reform movement, which stimulated the work on the correction approaches which would decrease the amount of violence in eh criminal justice structure. Correction models were divided into the community, crime control, and medical. The community model works as a preventive method by increasing the overall quality of life and education and creating an environment where individuals would develop a non-criminal attitude. Once the tendency to be a part of the community began to rise, which regularly referred to the churches or religious groups, it shaped the structure of the model (Warner & Konkel, 2019). The main attribute of the perspective is the collective approval or censure of specific actions and attempts to integrate some morals and philosophies that would guide the people toward righteous living.
In turn, crime control emphasizes the external methods of controlling the level of criminality. In cases when the individual does not have a solid moral foundation and honesty, one of the things that could limit their possibilities of community and offend is the risk of being punished by the law. Moreover, the population wanted to feel safe and secure from the murderers or serial killers, which started to be documented (Jones, 2019). Eventually, it resulted in fewer police officers and law enforcement on the streets and in general.
The medical model implied the theory that people were committing crimes because of psychological and social aspects that could influence that behavioural pattern. Therefore, criminals were perceived as ill, and their offences were an affirmation of their diseases, which could be cured. Due to the development of social sciences, including psychology and sociology, people tried to understand the nature of criminals and find the roots of their behaviour which influenced the creation of the medical model (Sahni & Phakey, 2021). One of the examples of such practices is electroshock therapy or institutions like asylums used for the corrections.
Overall, the appearance of such correction models as medical, criminal control, and community correction allowed for the significantly developing of much more humane methods than before. The Pennsylvanian and Auburn systems were the origins of the modern approach. They served as the first step toward the attempt to help the prisoners rehabilitate and have a chance to return to regular lives and experience the opportunity of a new start.
References
Jones, D. W. (2019). Understanding Criminal Behaviour: Psychosocial Perspectives on Criminality and Violence. Routledge.
Mitevski, A. (2019). Historical development of the prison system in the USA. Student’s Social Science Journal, 1(7), 103-111.
Sahni, S. P., & Phakey, N. (2021). Criminal Psychology: Understanding Criminal Behaviour. In Criminal Psychology and the Criminal Justice System in India and Beyond (pp. 21-30). Springer, Singapore.
Warner, B. D., & Konkel, R. H. (2019). Neighbourhood churches and their relationship to neighbourhood processes important for crime prevention. Journal of Urban Affairs, 41(8), 1183-1204.