Deterrence and Criminological Theory - Term Paper Example

Deterrence theory underlies the act of crime prevention. This theory is based on the concept that a person will be deterred from committing any sort of crime if he is aware of the consequences of committing a crime.

Deterrence theory promotes the concept that every person understands the difference between a right act and a wrong act. This theory of criminology is founded on the belief that a person does not commit a crime if the consequences of the crime outweigh the crime’s benefits. Deterrence is a concept that relates to the criminal justice system and keeps citizens safe from different kinds of crimes. Correctional Sanctions and Crime Reduction Correctional sanctions have played a considerable role in reducing the crime rate in almost every country of the world.

The application of correctional sanctions is an attempt to prevent criminals from committing any sort of crime by injecting the sense of consequences into the minds of the criminals. The fear of punishment makes a person think twice before committing a crime. Correctional sanctions include such measures that have proved to be very successful in reducing the crime rate in every part of the world. Some of the most useful measures include incarceration, punishments, and long sentences. “Punishments such as imprisonment are very useful mechanisms for deterring criminal activity” (Lynch, 1999).

One of the most important tasks of the government of any country should be to create the fear of punishment in the minds of criminals to prevent them from carrying out criminal activity. One of the benefits, which come from the implementation of correctional sanctions, is the removal of the fear of crimes and violence from the minds of peaceful citizens. The basic purpose of deterrence is to make criminals aware of the consequences of crimes. It is a common fact that people do not want to be punished or sent to jail in any case. Therefore, they opt not to commit any sort of crime as it endangers their dignity and respect among other people. Therefore, we can say that use of correctional sanctions is very effective in reducing the crime rate.