Treatment versus Punishment - Free Essay Example

Introduction

Social justice refers to the just and fair concepts of society and a person as gauged by the distribution of opportunities, individual activity, wealth, and societal privileges. Juvenile justice refers to the criminal law for persons under eighteen years who should receive differential treatment. Hence, social justice proposes that even minors should obtain special treatment. The two dissimilarities have resulted in a debate on utilizing either punishment or therapy for juvenile offenders. The juvenile justice system has shifted between punishment and rehabilitation founded on models with creditable consistency. Since the 19th-century individuals have regarded rehabilitation approaches as useful for juvenile delinquents. According to Listwan (2019), the traditional set of laws did not show any concern for the minors' well-being and care. The juvenile justice system imposed punishments on minor offenders. Attainment of confinement as a type of punishment is through a range of mechanisms such as deteriorated buildings or underground mines. Punishment aimed to frighten young individuals into evading crime in the imminent concept of escaping punitive sanction. Besides, most juvenile systems today have incorporated treatment as a technique for managing juvenile delinquency. Listwan (2013) provides an example of Ohio, and the Reclaim policy is adopted to develop community-based options such as treatments. The modification has grown due to the suggestion that offenders' confinement is insignificant in helping these juveniles live a better life. This paper aims to describe why treatment is a more practical approach than punishment in managing juvenile delinquents.

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Differences between the Treatment and Punishment Concepts

Treatment is the established services or actions intended to rehabilitate or modify an individual hence serving as a correctional system for the crimes committed by a juvenile. Execution of juvenile justice models as treatment will need more aid in minimizing crime rates such as robbery, murder, sexual assault, and drug possession. Some of the treatment undertakings that may help the juvenile reduce their wrongdoing levels even after serving their term comprise counseling, monitoring, and mentoring. According to Listwan (2013), delinquent treatment programs may entail school-based intrusions, group therapy, and community mentoring activities. Treatment programs are more cost-effective and have more significant opportunities for success in the juvenile delinquent's rehabilitation. As a result, it is more advantageous for the government to execute treatment measures to respond to minor crimes.

Besides, punishment is the act of imposing a penalty on an individual who has committed a crime. It aims at exempting the person from doing wrong deeds again in the future. Punishment concentrates on augmenting juvenile offenders' vengeance, disheartening them from participating in criminal activities (Struijk, 2015). Sometimes these punishments may have adverse outcomes on an individual's mental, physical, and sociological aspects. Under the punishment approaches, juvenile delinquents may obtain harsh penalties such as life without parole. Such minors will not have any other probabilities to remedy their conduct. Numerous people regard the sentence as a painful experience for juveniles to undergo after committing a crime. Higher incarceration rates augment operational expenses for various federal governments and states without minimizing recidivism.

Types of Treatment versus Punishment

Types of Treatment

Cognitive restructuring therapy determines modifying the antisocial thoughts or beliefs. The therapeutic methods aid individuals in noticing and transforming their negative patterns of thinking. Subsequently, it is imperative to examine methods to redirect and interrupt thought patterns as they can be self-defeating and destructive. For instance, a juvenile delinquent may place the blame on other people or reduce the role of smoking marijuana. According to Listwan (2013), minors may feel that should marijuana legalization in the nation hence utilizing their emotions or thoughts to validate drug use. Cognitive restructuring therapy aims to educate individuals, making them realize the situation and address reasons for viewing that condition, thus changing the response or result.

Cognitive skills therapy aims at enhancing a set of abilities to help individuals utilize them when faced with challenges or high-risk situations. The therapist helps the patients recognize particular distortions and biases in thinking using cognitive assessment, offering guidance on modifying this thinking (Listwan, 2013). For instance, cognitive skills therapy may entail augmenting social abilities, problem-solving, or educating a person on using a managing skill like self-talk. When individuals get upset or frustrated, self-talk enables them to manage their emotions.

Types of Punishment

Detention. A minor may face arrest as a form of punishment after the juvenile court judge determines that he or she has violated a criminal law to enable practical evaluation (Struijk, 2015). Besides, juveniles who may have been sentenced to incarceration or adjudicated delinquent face detention until establishing a long-term facility placement.

Probation is a sentencing method that permits young offenders to stay at their homes while the courts undertake the supervision processes. The juvenile probation departments have three elementary functions: presentence intake investigations, screening cases, and court-ordered monitoring for minors (Struijk, 2015). Thus, probation is a community punishment that aims at dealing with juveniles in various parts of the globe.

Building a Case

Juveniles perform significant sexual abuse portion done on other children. Treatment for minors with sexual behavior challenges has shifted from reformed adult therapies to more developmentally suitable methods. Besides, cognitive-behavioral therapy is the most utilized approach. A study shows that significant others in juvenile life are substantial when operating with these youths (Calvert & Bauer, 2018). The treatment programs, compared to punishment, are regarded as useful in correcting minors. Including the minor's family is perceived as an imperative method in the treatment process. Numerous juveniles' participate in sexually abusive behavior due to forms of immaturity, curiosity, and naivety. This conduct does not result in continued sexual crimes in adulthood. According to Listwan (2013), scientists propose that a juvenile's brain is not fully developed until 20 years. When minors lack proper support, they tend to have a lot of anger, making them commit more wrongdoings to get satisfied. Offering treatment and various rehabilitation types to these minors can help heal them and influence them to network in positive things.

Reitzel and Carbonell performed meta-analysis research on recidivism rates among juveniles in sex assault treatment approaches (Calvert & Bauer, 2018). These researchers revealed that the rates of minors who participated in treatment programs, their chances for sexual recidivism were approximately 7.37%, while those who never obtained these approaches had 18.93% sexual reoffending (Calvert & Bauer, 2018). These studies showed that regardless of race, the treatment platform was equally effective. Also, Carpentier, Silovsky, & Chaffin conducted follow-up research on therapy programs and discovered that recidivism chances were low even after ten years of treatment (Calvert & Bauer, 2018). Minors who had undergone treatment for sexual behavior challenges revealed no more problems in sexual assaults in the future than the youth control group who did experience sexual conduct complications.

After treatment, juveniles with prior sexual assault challenges did not participate in more sexually unsuitable activities. Hence, the juvenile justice system has experienced a decline in crime with the minor obtaining treatment as recidivism chances are low in sexual behavior problems (Calvert & Bauer, 2018). The outcome in the meta-analyses shows that the treatment platform is substantially better than no treatment control teams. These results prove that the treatment approach is an effective intervention for youths with sexual behavior challenges. Concentrating on issues that forced the juvenile to commit a crime may help the minor communicate appropriately and enhance positive rapport with the community's people.

Jurisdictions in the United States

There was a review on the rate of crimes in two Florida state cities, including Miami and Tampa. The evaluation focused on the issues of violent crime and property damage. According to BlueLine News. (n.d), the statistics show an evaluation regarding juveniles below 18 years of age who participated in distinct criminal activities. The same study shows that Miami has the highest rates of violent crimes totaling 10.2%, while the levels of property crime were 43.77%, having an overall criminality rate of 53.97%. According to BlueLine News. (n.d), Tampa has lower crime rates, both violent and property, with 6.26% and 24.62%, respectively, and general delinquencies of 30.88%. When compared with Miami, Tampa has low levels of crime.

The prevailing thought Tampa justice system is the utilization of treatment as an intervention to juvenile delinquency. Tampa has more elaborate correctional services for minors, which have the sole purpose of executing evidence-based systems to guarantee the youths' rehabilitation. The city's justice system perceives juvenile delinquents as teenagers who require assistance to better incorporate into society. As a rehabilitation method for minor offenders, treatment like mentoring has helped minimize juvenile delinquency in Tampa. The programs used in Tampa heavily lean to treatment as contrasted to punishment. Hence, this decline in crime figures is most likely due to the rehabilitation approach (Listwan, 2013). The city has lower recidivism levels compared to Miami, thus minimizing the rates of juvenile offenses.

Miami utilizes both punishment and treatment approaches against juvenile criminals. Teenagers who participate in minor delinquencies such as drug abuse and shoplifting are maintained under rehabilitation strategies such as community service. Minors who engage in severe misconduct such as drug trafficking and armed violence face penalty programs like transfer to adult courts (Listwan, 2013). Miami City believes that by establishing strict laws for juveniles, the youths will eventually evade engaging in illegal practices. The city has higher rates of both juvenile crimes and recidivism compared to Tampa.

Jurisdiction with Lower Recidivism Rates

Recidivism is the relapse of an individual into criminal behavior after obtaining interventions or sanctions for the prior crime. The inability of the youth to incorporate into their communities increases the rates of recidivism. According to Listwan (2013), treatment should be an effective method to handle, and aid minors in overcoming juvenile delinquencies. High recidivism levels are an indicator of collapsing young programs. Both punishment and treatment approaches should make the youths participate in lesser illegal activities. Besides, lower recidivism rates portray that correctional programs are effective in reducing the crimes committed. The two cities in Florida state that Tampa has lower recidivism rates than Miami, depicting that treatment programs in that area are effective; hence, the best indicator for success.