Deterrence

Responses to Crime and Deviance Over Time

In ancient Western societies, codes of conduct relied upon punishments to control behavior. When crime became a greater concern, due to either the loss of overall public safety or the concerns of those who controlled the power to create laws, punishment severity increased. Likewise, as crime concerns diminished, punishments diminished in a similar manner. This pattern was repeated for centuries until a time in Europe known as the Enlightenment.

The Enlightenment (also known as the Age of Reason), broadly from 1650 to 1800, was known for its interest in scientific thought, the use of reason and philosophy to understand and correct social problems, and its belief in the value and dignity of all of humanity. During this period, several legal philosophers focused on the social problem of crime. These people noted that many persons were unknowingly committing crimes and entering the justice system. They were either unaware of the punishment or they were entirely unaware that their actions were criminal. Sanctioning these individuals not only was a waste of money, but also created a social problem because these “offenders” were not aware that their actions were illegal until after the crime had [Page 259]been committed. Would it not be better, the philosophers reasoned, to let the public know what is legal and illegal, and to let them know what the punishments for certain crimes would be? Crime could be better controlled if the government would create laws that could be understood by the typical member of society and if those laws and the corresponding punishments were posted in a public place to eliminate misunderstandings.

These suggested changes were not well received by the government for a number of reasons. First, governments had become accustomed to vague laws and punishments, which allowed them to create crimes and punishments as necessary to achieve political ends. Second, vague sentencing allowed the powerful to be convicted but not receive any punishment as punishments were not specified.

The church also disliked these philosophies. Christianity at that time favored the idea of predestination. This belief argued that behavior was preordained, and it was impossible to change a future which had already been determined. Punishment, or the threat thereof, would have no impact on future behavior, given that future behavior was already determined and would not change, regardless of the presence of laws and the threats of punishments. In order to have deterrence become a goal of the justice system and the government, the church had to adopt a more moderate doctrine and embrace the relatively new concept of free will. Over time, and motivated by the mounting failures and increasing costs of the justice system, these philosophical changes were accomplished. The Age of Reason and these Enlightenment philosophers began to alter the history of the justice system with this new concept known as deterrence. The goal had shifted to crime avoidance, rather than simple crime punishment. The question then became how best to accomplish this new goal.

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