The purposes of punishment, including protection, retribution, deterrence and reformation, and how religious and non-religious views weigh these aims.

What this dot point is asking

In Morality and Belief you study one moral issue through religious and non-religious responses. Using Crime and Punishment as the worked example, this dot point covers the purposes of punishment: the reasons society punishes people who break the law. The four you must know are protection, retribution, deterrence and reformation.

You need to describe and explain each purpose, and be able to evaluate which aims religious and non-religious people support and why.

Protection

Protection focuses on society, not the offender. Supporters argue that the first duty of the justice system is to keep people safe, so dangerous offenders should be kept away from potential victims. A criticism is that protection only works while the offender is locked up, so on its own it does not solve the problem long term.

Retribution

Retribution looks backwards at what the offender did, arguing that wrongdoing deserves a fitting penalty. Some religious believers support it: the Old Testament phrase "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" is often quoted, and many people feel that serious crime should be met with serious punishment so that justice is seen to be done. Critics argue that retribution can become revenge and does nothing to change the offender or prevent future crime.

Deterrence

Deterrence looks forwards, trying to reduce future crime by making the consequences frightening enough. Supporters say tough, certain punishment makes people think twice. Critics point out that deterrence only works if offenders believe they will be caught, and that many crimes are committed in the heat of the moment, under the influence, or out of desperation, when no one is weighing up consequences.

Reformation

Reformation is supported strongly by many religious believers. For example, Christians point to Jesus' teaching on forgiveness and mercy and to the belief that every person, made in the image of God, can be redeemed and is not beyond change. Many non-religious people also support reformation because, if it works, it reduces reoffending and makes society safer, which they see as the most effective outcome. The main criticism is that reformation does not always work and may seem too soft on serious crime.

How religious and non-religious views weigh the purposes

This is exactly the kind of tension a National 5 evaluate question tests. A strong answer can hold these in balance: for example, noting that a Christian might support both protection (to keep people safe) and reformation (because of forgiveness and human dignity), while a humanist might reject retribution as unhelpful revenge and back reform because the evidence suggests it reduces reoffending.

Examples in context

Example 1. A prison rehabilitation programme. An offender who learns to read, gains a qualification and overcomes an addiction in prison shows reformation in action: the aim is that they leave able to live without crime.

Example 2. A long sentence for a dangerous offender. A long prison term for a violent offender shows protection (keeping the public safe) and may also reflect retribution (paying for the harm done), showing how one sentence can serve several purposes.

Try this

Q1. Name the purpose of punishment that aims to keep the public safe. [1 mark]

• Cue. Protection.

Q2. State the difference between retribution and reformation. [1 mark]

• Cue. Retribution is about the offender deserving to pay for the crime; reformation is about changing the offender so they do not reoffend.