Rehabilitation of

Criminals and
Juveniles in society
and Law
 1.1 Basic concept of Rehabilitation of
Criminals
• The concept of rehabilitation rests on the
assumption that criminal behaviour is caused by
some factor.
• This perspective does not deny that people make
choices to break the law, but it does assert that
these choices are not a matter of pure "free will.“
• Influenced by a person's social surroundings,
psychological development, or biological makeup
• Reasons – Lack of parents’ love and affection,
exposure of antisocial factors, comparison with
other class of society and their lifestyle, antisocial
values, temperament, etc.
• The rehabilitation model "makes sense" only if
criminal behaviour is caused and not merely a
freely willed, rational choice.
• If crime were a matter of free choices, then there
would be nothing within particular individuals to
be "fixed" or changed.
• Rehabilitation of medically ill person
• Rehabilitation is also referred to as
“treatment.”
• Rehabilitation combine two theories
1. Reformative theory
2. Deterrent Theory
 Man is not born as criminal but
circumstances compel him to do crime
• A criminal is a person who has committed a crime or has
been legally convicted of a crime.
• Nature Vs. Nature debate – komiya 1999
• The nature versus nurture debate is one of the oldest
philosophical issues within psychology. So what exactly is it
all about?
• Nature refers to all of the genes and hereditary factors that
influence who we are—from our physical appearance to
our personality characteristics.
• Nurture refers to all the environmental variables that
impact who we are, including our early childhood
experiences, how we were raised, our social relationships,
and our surrounding culture.
• Biological psychology vs. behaviorism
• Some philosophers such as Plato and Descartes
suggested that certain things are inborn, or that
they occur naturally regardless of environmental
influences.
• John Locke believed in what is known as tabula
rasa, which suggests that the mind begins as
a blank state. According to this notion, everything
that we are and all of our knowledge is
determined by our experience.
• Theorists such as John B. Watson believed that people
could be trained to do and become anything, regardless of
their genetic background.
• Some suggest that criminals are born, these are, twin
studies (Bartol 1998), Family Studies (Farrington 1991) and
a study by Jacobs et al (1965) who compared
chromosomes.
• On the other hand there are also studies that have been
conducted to prove that criminals are made by society.
Bandura et al, social learning theory accounts for this and
also Virkkumen (1986) who looked at biochemistry and
Becker 1963 who studied labelling behaviour.
 Causation of Crime
• Heredity
• Mental Disorder
• Insanity
• Bio-physical factor [abnormal, defective,
immoral, etc.]
• Mental retardation
• Mental illness
Various theories of causation of crimes
• Crime is highly complex phenomenon that
changes across culture and time.
• Activities which are legal in one country (for an
example, alcohol consumption in USA) are illegal
in other country (for an example, alcohol in any
strict Muslim country)
• As culture changes over time, behavior that once
were not criminalized becomes criminalized.
• That’s why there is no simple answer for “What is
crime?” Or “what causes crime?”
 Lombroso theory
• Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909) was an Italian
psychiatrist and military medical doctor
who developed theories about the criminals.
• His theories are no longer valid today
• Lombroso developed the theory about "born
criminal". In 3000 anthropometric measurements
[height, weight, etc.] of criminal and non-criminal
and he found some biological traits of criminals.
• Biological traits of born criminal are: unusual size or shape of the head,
strange eyes, facial asymmetry, extended jaw and jaw bone, too big or too
small ears, full lips leaned forward, abnormal teeth, wrinkled skin, nose
curled up; thieves have a flat nose and murderers have a beak nose, too
long, too small or flat chin, dark skin and too long arms.
• According to Lombroso, persons who have five or more biological traits
are born criminals. Beside physical traits Lombroso introduces some other
traits of born criminal:
1) hypersensitivity to pain and touch,
2) use of special criminal slang (abusive language),
3) grotesque (ugly) expression of thoughts,
4) tattoos and
5) unemployment
• Lombroso later changes the theory of born criminal and develops a new
theory. Classification of criminals is made into three categories:

1) born criminals (30% of all criminals),

2) abnormal criminals (idiots, imbeciles, paranoids, melancholic, paralytics,
epileptics, demented persons, alcoholics and hysterics)
3) occasional criminals
a) Criminaloids
b) pseudo criminals
c) criminals out of habit
• Criminaloids had difficulties during their childhood and can occasionally
behave delinquently. Pseudo criminals are insane persons and those who
committed crime in self defence. Habitual criminals had a poor education
during their childhood or have been in social interaction with criminals.
• Further studies of Lombroso's thesis were made by Goring in 1913
and Hooton in 1939.
• Goring contests Lombroso's thesis based on the experiment he
made on 3000 criminals and non-criminals. Goring didn't find any
physical abnormalities or traits on criminals.
• He criticized Lombroso on the issue of born criminal and found that
such thesis is inaccurate as well as dangerous. Goring concluded
that no one is criminal until he or she commits a crime.
• Lombroso's theory was popular in his time, but it was later
debunked.
• Lombroso's views on crime are still present today in the form of
stereotypes on some minority groups.
• Research conducted on police sub cultural behaviour shows that
police officers have similar stereotypes on particular racial groups.
 Enrico Ferri Theory
• Enrico ferri was an Italian criminologist who was the
student of criminologist theorist Lombroso.
• Despite being student of him he opposed the theory of
born criminal.
• He challenged Lombrosian view of criminality.
• Through his scholarly researches, Ferri proved that mere
biological reasons were not enough to account for
criminality.
• He firmly believed that other factors such as emotional
reaction, social infirmity or geographical conditions also
play a vital role in determining criminal tendencies in men.
• It is for this reason that he is sometimes called the founder
of ‘criminal sociology’.
• Ferri believed that crime was caused by a number of
factors,
1. Physical or geographical – Race, climate, geographical
location, season of year, temperature, etc.
2. Anthropological – age, sex, psychological condition
3. Psychological or social – population, religion, custom,
governmental structure, economic condition
• Ferri believed that those who committed crime should
be detained for as long as possible and should not be
given any kind of option for redemption.
• Ferri emphasized that criminal behaviour is an outcome of a variety
of factors having their combined effect on the individual.
• According to him social change, which is inevitable in a dynamic
society, results in disharmony, conflict and cultural variations.
• As a result of this, social disorganization takes place and a
traditional pattern of social control mechanism totally breaks down.
• In the wake of such rapid social changes, the incidence of crime is
bound to increase tremendously.
• Ferri emphasized that a criminal should be treated as a product of
the conditions which played his life.
• Therefore, the basic purpose of crime prevention programme
should be to remove conditions making for crime.
• Ferri worked out a five-fold classification of criminals, namely:
1. Born criminals;
2. Occasional criminals
3. Passionate criminals
4. Insane criminal and
5. Habitual criminals.
• He suggested an intensive programme of crime prevention and
recommended a series of measures for treatment of offenders.
• He asserted that punishment could be one of the possible methods
of reforming the criminal.
• Many critics, however, opposed Ferri’s law of criminal saturation
stating that it is nothing more than a statement that the law of
cause and effect equally applies to criminal behaviour as well.
 Freud theory
• Sigmund Freud founded psychoanalytic theory in
the 1920’s.
• The basis for psychoanalytic theory is the
unconscious mind.
• “Freud believed that people could be cured by
making conscious their unconscious thoughts and
motivations, thus gaining insight”
• The Psychoanalytic theory was brought into the
criminology world to help explain criminal
behaviour and later help in the construction of
policy implications.
• Psychoanalytic theory is often compared to the
biological theory although these theories are similar as
well as they are also very different.
• The Biological Theory is focused more on the genetic
makeup of why people commit crimes. Thus they
believe that criminals are born this way and are
predestined to commit crimes.
• Where Psychoanalytic Theory believe that we care
born as blank slates and it is the things that happen to
us in the early years of life that determine our ability to
develop criminal behaviour or not.
• It all started with the clinical trial called Anna O.
• Anna O was a case of a disturbed young lady. She
suffered from high levels of anxiety mixed with
phobias. Freud treated and experimented with
the treatment options of Anna O’s condition
which laid the ground work for psychoanalysis
• The basis of the psychoanalytic theory is
categorized by the id (part of mind in which
primary process are manifest), ego, and
superego. All these unconscious actions work
together to balance each other out.
• The id is the instinctive unconsciousness which is the instincts we
are born with as an infant.
• For example, when a baby is hungry the baby cries. The only thing
to make the baby stop crying is to feed the baby.
• The ego is the rational part of the brain that develops a little later in
childhood. For example, a 3 or 4 year old knows not to hit someone
or they will get in trouble. Then the superego develops and the
child knows not to hit because they will hurt the other person, thus
gaining the moral aspect.
• The psychoanalytic theory related to crime comes from the
imbalance of these id, ego and superego
• When these id, ego, and superego are imbalanced it causes people
to commit crimes.
• One criticism of psychoanalytic therapy is the
cost of the treatment and the effectiveness.
• It may take many sessions a week or years and
even then the effectiveness of the
psychoanalytic therapy can be questioned
• This theory is not measurable either because
the unconscious mind cannot be measured
• the evidence can be interpreted or
reinterpreted to prove the theory correct.
• In regards to policy implications the Psychoanalytic theory
play a big role in a few of the major implications set into
place today.
• Rehabilitation is one of the policy implications
psychoanalytic theory plays a part in.
• Our Justice system has many implications for rehabilitation.
Drug rehabilitation, Juvenile corrections, and access to
therapy while incarcerated are a few.
• Psychoanalytic Theory believes that if these offenders can
bring their unconscious motives for acting out and
committing crime to the surface they can be corrected and
will prevent the offenders from committing future crimes.
 Differential Association Theory of
Crime (Sutherland’s Theory)
• Differential Association theory is a criminology
theory that looks at the acts of the criminal as
learned behaviours.
• Edwin H. Sutherland is credited with the
development of the Differential Association
theory in 1939.
• Sutherland, a sociologist and professor most of
his life, developed Differential Association theory
to explain how it was that criminals came to
commit acts of deviant [abnormal] behaviour.
• Differential Association theory, believes that the
behaviours of an individual are influenced and shaped
by other individuals they associate with.
• The primary reference group is that of the nuclear
family, which the individual lives and grows up with.
• It is believed that these interactions formulate the
individuals understanding of societal norms and values.
It is then assumed that if the individual is capable of
learning what is acceptable in society, they are also not
capable of learning what is considered unacceptable.
• Criminal behaviour is learned in interaction with others in a process of
communication. - From the moment an individual is born they are being
conditioned to the norms of society. They learn gender roles through their
interactions with their parents and observations of gender specific characteristics.
• Learning criminal behaviour occurs within primary groups (family, friends, peers,
their most intimate, personal companions) - An individuals’ behaviour is primarily
influenced by their family, since that is the first group interaction they receive.
Additionally an individual’s behaviour is influenced by their peer group (through
direct and indirect interaction) and through their intimate relationships with other
individuals.
• Learning criminal behaviour involves learning the techniques, motives, drives,
rationalizations, and attitudes - Surely, just because an individual has a criminal in
their primary reference group doesn’t mean that they’ll partake in criminal
behaviour. For example, many convicted sexual assailants admit that the first time
they committed sexual assault they felt guilty. The guilt comes from their
socialization of societal norms that rape is unacceptable.
• This last principle asserts that even those criminals,
who rationalize their behaviours as trying to fulfil basic
needs, are not above reproach.
• Non criminals are subject to obtain the same general
needs as criminals and do so in a non deviant fashion.
• Criticism of Sutherland’s Differential Association theory
includes the assumption that Sutherland was
suggesting the mere interaction with criminals would
lead an individual to criminal behaviour.
• After Sutherland passed away, the Differential Association theory
was most notably expanded upon by sociologist Burgess and Akers
in 1968.
• Burgess and Akers called their theory the Differential-
Reinforcement theory.
• They disregarded Sutherland’s view that criminal behaviour was
learned in primary reference groups.
• In addition, The Differential Reinforcement theory suggests that
criminal behaviour could be due to non social factors.
• For example, the influence of drugs on an individual’s psychological
and physiological condition could contribute to an individual’s
deviant behaviour.
• Differential Reinforcement theory mirrors Rational Choice theory’s
idea that an individual will take past experiences into consideration
when calculating future behaviours.
• Criticism –
1. It is incorrect to say that persons become
criminals because of their association with
criminal behavior patterns. If that were so,
everyone in contact with criminals would
adopt or follow criminality, which is not true.
2. The theory fails to answer why persons have
the association they associates with criminals
or non-criminals.
 Punishment
• Punishing the offenders is a primary function of all civil
states.
• The incident of crime and its retribution has always
been an unending fascination for human mind.
• The crucial problem today is whether a criminal is to be
regarded by society as a nuisance to be abated or an
enemy to be crushed or a patient to be treated or a
refractory child to be disciplined? Or should he be
regarded as none of these things but simply be
punished to show to others that anti-social conduct
does not finally pay.
 Meaning of Punishment
• “Punishment involves the infliction [impose something
unpleasant] of pain or forfeiture.”
• Purpose of punishment is to cause physical pain to the
wrong-doer.
• A person is said to be punished when some pain or
detriment inflicted on him.
• Walter Reckless: “The redress that the commonwealth
takes against an offending member.”
• Westermarck: “Punishment is such suffering as is
inflicted upon the offender in a definite way by, or in
the name of the society of which he is a permanent or
temporary member.”
 Need of punishment
• To set an example in society
• To punish criminal for his sin
• To rehabilitate the criminal mind
• To remove criminals from the society
• To decrease the crime rate
 Object of punishment
• Prevent criminal
• Removing criminal
• Rehabilitate the criminal
• Removing the desire of criminal
• To realize offender about loss or harm of
victim
 Theories of Punishment
1. Retributive Theory – an eye for an eye
2. Expiatory Theory – suffering to the sin
3. Deterrent Theory – set an example
4. Preventive Theory – disable the offender
5. Reformative Theory – reformation of criminal
 1. Deterrent Theory
• Punishment is primarily deterrent when its
object is to teach a lesson to others.
• Offences are committed is the result of
conflicts between society and wrong-doer.
• By making it an ill-bargain to the offender, the
world at large would learn that crime is a
costly way of achieving an end.
• By this theory, state seeks to create fear in its
members about crime.
 2. Preventive Theory
• The preventive theory aims at preventing a crime
by disabling the criminal
• For example, by inflicting the death penalty or by
confined him in prison or by suspending his
driving license, etc.
• The extreme penalty i.e. death sentence ensure
that, once and for all, the offender will be
prevented from repeating the heinous act.
• It creates fear of punishment, disable the
offender and/or transform the offender by
reformation or rehabilitation
 Difference between preventive and
deterrent theory
Deterrent Preventive

Giving warning to society at large Giving warning by Disabling criminal

Purpose – set a lesson Purpose- disable wrong-doer from

repeating the crime
 3. Reformative theory
• A crime is committed as a result of the conflicts
between character and the motive of criminal.
• Temptation is the motive
• Strengthening the character of man, so they may
not become easy victim to his own temptation.
• According to this theory, crime is like disease.
• Criticism – you can not cure by killing. Wrong-
doer’s stay in prison should serve to re-educate
him or re-shape his personality.
 Relation between Deterrent and
Reformative
• Deterrent theory supports the punishment
like death penalty, rigorous imprisonment,
fine or even whipping.
• But, Reformative theory supports only to the
imprisonment till reformation procedure.
 4. Retributive Theory
• Wrong-doer pays for his wrong doing
• An eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth
• It says that, if thief cut the hand of thief, he
can’t repeat the crime again.
• It ignores the causes of the crime, and it does
not strike at the removal of the causes.
 5. Compensation Theory / Expiation
• Object of punishment must not be merely to
prevent further crimes, but also to
compensate the victim of the crime.
• This theory over simplify the crime. Motive of
crime is not always economical.
• Theory of crime may be neither workable nor
effective.
• This theory can only play subordinate role to
other theories.
 Questions for Assignment –
Submission Date: 09/07/2018
• What are the objects of punishment? Is it advisable to
impose punishment in all criminal cases only with a
reformative theory view?
• “Not a single theory of punishment is full-proof”. Do you
agree? Critically comment on each theory of punishment.
• Discuss the various theories of causation of crime. Give
your opinion regarding which theory is the most suitable in
criminal psychology in India.
• Write a short note on: Sutherland’s theory
• Explain in detail: “Man is not born as criminal”
• What is rehabilitation? Explain the concept of rehabilitation
of criminal in detail.