Rehabilitation is the Most Valuable Justification for Imprisonment - Essay Example

Rehabilitation is the Most Valuable Justification for Imprisonment al Affiliation Rehabilitation is an approach carried out to help a criminal offender mend his or her criminal ways. Various programs are usually used to help eliminate the criminal acts and prevent them from re-occurring. One such program is individual and group therapy. Psychological, social and relational rehabilitation approaches can be applied in any of the programs used. Since some offenders suffer from mental illnesses, the approach taken is very crucial in ensuring that they do not repeat the crimes. Punishment on the other hand is another approach applied on criminal offenders. However, it is not seen as the proper way of dealing with offenders when applied solely, especially those suffering from mental illnesses. The offenders overall health might be affected and it is expensive to keep them in prisons. Other methods such as taking them through mental health courts or mental rehabs are more effective. Most of the rehabilitation programs are funded by the government, which collects revenues from the tax payers; the revenues are in turn used to fund these programs. Keywords: Rehabilitation, Punishment, Taxpayers, Offenders, Mental Health Introduction Rehabilitation is aimed at reforming the characters of the offenders. Different programs are usually used to help them change their criminal behavior. These include therapy, education, inter-personal skills training, group or individual counseling, treatment given by service providers and family intervention. Compared to punishment, rehabilitation works better in preventing re-offending by criminals. In fact, it has been found that prisoners who do not get any form of rehabilitation in prison are more likely to re-offend, which is often with more violent or more serious offences (Gilligan, 2012). According to Gilligan (2012), prisons are meant to restrain violent offenders and at the same time, assist them in mending their ways, so that they return to their respective communities as changed individuals. Rehabilitation as a Positive Pathway that can Prevent Crimes from Re-occurring Prisons cannot deal with all the issues that are related to or that cause crimes, such as offences as a result of poverty and homelessness, alcohol abuse, drug abuse among others. Rehabilitation is a positive pathway that not only teaches and heals criminals, but it can prevent crimes from re-occurring. The practical justification for rehabilitative measures usually emphasize on benefits in reduction of crime, its contribution to a wide range of risk management policy objectives and protection of the public. Offenders are not the only ones who benefit from rehabilitation, but rather “communities and potential victims” (Robinson & Crow, 2009, p. 162). Therefore, rehabilitation is an affirmative road that can prevent the reoccurrence of crime. Below are some of the approaches to rehabilitation that prevent offenders from repeating their criminal acts. 1. Psychological rehabilitation According to Stevens, the programs aim at getting rid of dysfunctional thinking and anti-social behaviors, substituting this with “creative, abstract and consequential thinking, interpersonal problem-solving skills and social perspective taking” (2012, p. 2). Specially trained personnel facilitate these programs. Psychological rehabilitation supports positive individual change in the offender. 2. Social rehabilitation Most of the offences dealt with by the courts are related to social and economic withdrawal for example, lack of employment, having an income that is low and lack of housing or poor housing. Offenders go through these programs for certain durations of time and the treatment of the individual goes hand-in-hand with social rehabilitation. Social rehabilitation can be defined as “a process by which the offender takes his or her place in the society” (Robinson & Crow, 2009, p. 124). It emphasizes on the offender’s place in the society. 3. Relational rehabilitation Therapeutic intervention is also part of treatment of the offender in rehabilitation. Its aim is to change the behavior of the offender, as well as attempt to change certain aspects in the society he or she is in. External agencies aid in causing change, as well as the offender putting on efforts to amend his or her behavior, even as he is supported by others (Robinson & Crow, 2009). The behavior of the offender determines the way he relates to people in his environment. According to Harrison and Rainey, the system of criminal justice which includes state-inflicted punishment “involves the intentional imposition of a pain (sanction, burden) on an individual following his or her violation of important social norms that are intended to protect significant common interests of members of the political community” (2013, n.p.). Punishment by imprisonment cannot be used on low level crimes caused by circumstances such as family issues, lack of a home, lack of economic opportunities and poverty (OConnor, ‎Rausch,‎ Albrecht & Klemenčič, 2007). Prison as the Least Effective Strategy of Punishment for Offenders Suffering from Mental Illnesses Inmates suffer from different disorders. According to research, majority are the ones who suffer from serious mental illnesses (Benson, 2003). According to Benson, approximately 20 percent of prison inmates in the United States suffer from mental illnesses (2003). Persons who have committed offences that are minor due to a mental disorder and have been sent to prison suffer a great deal since the disorder continues to go “unnoticed, undiagnosed and untreated”(World Health Organization, 2005, p. 1). Prisons therefore are unsuitable places for offenders suffering from mental illnesses. The conditions in a prison are within a space that is limited resulting to overcrowding, which can aggravate the mentally ill offenders’ overall health. Keeping people in jail and especially the mentally ill is quite costly. The ill offenders can also result to committing suicide or end up in substance abuse in prisons. This is as a result of depression caused by isolation, violence, or even deprivation of activities that are meaningful (World Health Organization, 2005). Mental health courts and therapeutic jurisprudence can be considered as interventions for offenders with mental illness rather than prisons. Mental health courts usually deal with offences that are minor and so the violent cases are excluded. They encourage compliance to the treatment and improve the offender’s quality of life. Therapeutic jurisprudence is centered on attaining therapeutic goals in the law and legal system. The therapy providers are also the extra-legal authorities in the mental health courts (Hughes & Peak, 2012). Among the purposes of these mental interventions is to help the offender acquire treatment, mental recovery, emotional recovery and get access to services that offer additional support. At the same time, the state is also involved in enhancing public safety through the police. According to Schneider, 2010, their goal is also to “reduce homelessness as well as psychiatric hospitalization” (as cited in Hughes & Peak, 2012, p. 24). Which is More Desirable: Tax Payers Paying for Prison Costs or Rehabilitation Costs? Taxation is vital in reducing the gap between the income of the state and the expenditure. The tax system raises capital that is crucial for paying public services in such a way that it does not slow down the development of the economy. The government is usually committed to the corporation tax rate. It is reasonable that taxpayers should pay according to their individual means. Prisons and most rehabilitation programs are funded by the state. The government collects a certain amount of tax from the taxpayers depending on their means, and at such, funds the prisons and the rehabilitation centers. Both the paying of prison cost and rehabilitation costs through taxes are both desirable since in prison, high level crimes such as rape cases must be punished through imprisonment. Alternatively, low level crimes such as substance abuse caused by circumstances like family problems need to be rehabilitated. In prisons, the revenue collected from the taxpayers is used to improve on infrastructure of social and health services offered, secure units, and other forms of accommodation made available. It is also used to pay the police force their salaries. In rehabilitation programs, the revenue is used to acquire training materials, provide secure services, as well as pay the training experts, for welfare costs for the family of the ill offender, and sometimes his victim. Cost is incurred for effective rehabilitation and reduced recidivism produces direct savings in these areas (Hughes & Peak, 2012). Conclusion Rehabilitation is definitely the most valuable alternative to imprisonment, especially for crimes that can be dealt with through rehabilitation programs. Through these programs, the offender is able to change his anti-social behaviors and dysfunctional thinking in order to find his place in the society. Imprisonment is not a solution for offenders with mental health issues, since the chances of them suffering more or becoming more aggressive are higher. Treating mentally ill offenders is a more effective way of curbing and preventing the crimes they commit. However, mentally sane offenders who have committed severe crimes such as rape and murder need to be punished through imprisonment in order to restrain them. In order to sustain the above projects, the government supports them through the revenue collected from taxpayers. Reference List Benson, E. (2003). Rehabilitate or Punish? Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug03/rehab.aspx Gilligan, J. (2012). Punishment Fails. Rehabilitation Works. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/12/18/prison-could-be-productive/punishment-fails-rehabilitation-works Harrison, K. & Rainey, B. (Eds.). (2013). The Wiley-Blackwell Handbook of Legal and Ethical Aspects of Sex Offender Treatment and Management. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell. Hughes, S. & Peak, T. (2012). Evaluating Mental Health Courts as an Ideal Mental Health Intervention. Best Practices in Mental Health, 8 (2). Retrieved from http://essential.metapress.com/content/24185527g2250788/ O’Connor, V. M., Rausch, C., Albrecht, H. & Klemenčič, G. (2007). Model Codes for Post-conflict Criminal Justice: Model criminal Code. Washington DC: United States Institute of Peace. Robinson, G. & Crow, I. D. (2009). Offender Rehabilitation: Theory, Research and Practice. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. Stevens, A. (2012). Offender Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Communities: Enabling Change the TC Way. Oxon: Routledge. World Health Organization. (2005). Mental Health and Prisons. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mental_health/policy/mh_in_prison.pdf Read More