In the early 19th century there were many classists that believed in voluntarism. This mean that the criminal has the choice to commit the crime.
They believed that punishment should be prompt and fair to all people , depending on the crime committed . They punished criminals to deter people.
People believed that severe punishment was making no difference to crime rates , this meant that criminals were not deterred and recidivism rates were still high. The solution to this , to understand the cause of crime , to solve crime. Positivism occurred in the late 19th century and early 20th century .Their assumptions about criminal behaviour , was that determinism caused someone to become a criminal. They believe it is not the offenders fault and that they should be punished generously. Instead of trying to punish them harshly , the criminals should tried to be ‘cured’ and sent into a rehabilitation period , so that they can later on be brought back into society .
Severe punishment were not making a difference to the high crime rates. So they found that people were not deterred and recidivism rates are still high.So they should try and understand cause of crime to fix criminals. They believe that this would make society a better place and that they would be able to keep crime under control. People thought that deterrence will never work because it doesn’t remove the case of criminal behaviour. People thought it worked in general, however it didn’t actually reform the criminals.
Realism started in 1970s . It was set up by the government in power at that time . The government showed beliefs of voluntarism.One of the punishments used by the realists was zero tolerance. Meaning in a certain area all the same crime will be treated the same way and harshly. The realists used prison to punish criminals , they did this because they believed this would work to deter criminals . They also thought that the positivists methods of rehabilitation was not effective. Statistics showed that the realists form of punishment had low recidivism rates.
Both right and left realism unconsciously affect the penal systems. Right realists supports law and order policies. Laws should be rigidly enforced. The consequences of crime should not be an attempt at treatment or to reform of the criminal. These approaches are considered ineffective . Instead, harsh punishments should be enforced as a way of getting criminals off the streets, as deterrence to future crime.Public fear of crime and criminals,creates a
How crime theories have influenced penal policy.
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barrier in the development of society in the way in which people trust one another and work together towards a common goal.
Whereas left realism focuses on the impact that relative deprivation and individualism has on communities which causes