The U S Penal System Essay

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Prison inmates, are some of the most "maladjusted" people in

society. Most of the inmates have had too little discipline or too

much, come from broken homes, and have no self-esteem. They are very

insecure and are "at war with themselves as well as with society"

(Szumski 20). Most inmates did not learn moral values or learn to

follow everyday norms. Also, when most lawbreakers are labeled

criminals they enter the phase of secondary deviance. They will admit

they are criminals or believe it when they enter the phase of

secondary deviance (Doob 171). Next, some believe that if we want to

rehabilitate criminals we must do more than just send them to prison.

For inezce, we could give them a chance to acquire job skills; which

will improve the chances that inmates will become productive citizens

upon release. The programs must aim to change those who want to

change. Those who are taught to produce useful goods and to be

productive are "likely to develop the self-esteem essential to a

normal, integrated personality" (Szumski 21). This kind of program

would provide skills and habits and "replace the sense of

hopelessness" that many inmates have (Szumski 21).

Moreover, another technique used to rehabilitate criminals is

counseling. There is two types of counseling in general, individual

and group counseling. Individual counseling is much more costly than

group counseling. The aim of group counseling is to develop positive

peer pressure that will influence its members. One idea in many

sociology text is that group problem-solving has definite advantages

over individual problem-solving. The idea is that a wider variety of

solutions can be derived by drawing from the experience of several

people with different backgrounds. Also one individuals problem might

have already been solved by another group member and can be suggested.

Often if a peer proposes a solution it carries more weight than if the

counselor were to suggest it (Bennett 20-24).

Further, in sociology, one of the major theories of

delinquency is differential association (Cressey 1955). This means

some people learned their ways from "undesirable" people who they were

forced to be in association with and that this association "warps"

their thinking and social attitudes. "Group counseling, group

interaction, and other kinds of group activities can provide a

corrective, positive experience that might help to offset the earlier

delinquent association" (Bennett 25). However, it is said that group

counseling can do little to destroy the power of labeling (Bennett

26). The differential-association theory emphasizes that a person is

more likely to become a criminal if the people who have the greatest

influence upon them are criminals (Doob 169).

Most of today's correctional institutions lack the ability and

programs to rehabilitate the...

Szumski, Bonnie. America's Prisons Opposing Viewpoints. Greenhaven
Press, Inc.: 1985

Doob, Christopher. Sociology: An Introduction. Harcourt Brace &
Company, United States: 1994

Bennett, Lawrence. Counseling in Correctional Environments. New York:
New York, 1978

Fox, Vernon. Community-Based Corrections. Englewood Cliffs: New
Jersey, 1977. You should cite this paper as follows:

MLA Style
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