Penology and Corrections

Penology studies punishment and corrections — the theory and practice of how societies sanction offenders, especially through imprisonment.

Scope

It covers theories of punishment, the prison and its effects, rehabilitation and recidivism, community corrections, and the politics of penal policy.

Core questions

• How is punishment justified?
• What are the effects of imprisonment?
• Does punishment rehabilitate or deter?
• How have penal practices changed?

Key concepts

• Deterrence and retribution
• Rehabilitation
• Incapacitation
• Pains of imprisonment
• Mass incarceration
• Disciplinary power

Key theories

Proportionate punishment

Beccaria argued for proportionate, certain punishment aimed at deterrence.

The society of captives

Sykes analysed prison social order and the 'pains of imprisonment'.

Discipline and the prison

Foucault traced the rise of the prison and disciplinary power in modern society.

History

Penology developed from Enlightenment reform (Beccaria) through the sociology of the prison (Sykes) and Foucault's critical history of punishment, now centered on mass incarceration and its alternatives.

Debates

Does prison work?

Whether imprisonment rehabilitates, deters, or mainly incapacitates and harms.

Key figures

• Cesare Beccaria
• Gresham Sykes
• Michel Foucault

Seminal works

• beccaria-1764
• sykes-1958
• foucault-1975

Frequently asked questions

What are the pains of imprisonment?

Sykes's term for the deprivations of prison life (of liberty, goods, autonomy, security, relationships) that shape inmate society.