Incarceration Vs Rehabilitation Essay

Incarceration or rehabilitation? This is an issue that I have strong feelings about but my opinion is not necessarily supported by the research. I believe that if a person commits a crime, they must pay the price, regardless of the possible causes for the deviant behavior. I do believe that rehabilitation is possible in some cases and should not be ignored, but a criminal must still serve time if required by law. Strengthening rehabilitation programs in prisons is something that I am completely in favor of and making parents more accountable for their underage children’s behavior is also something I would wholeheartedly support but I believe in prison time for criminal behavior. Research on this topic leans more towards rehabilitation …show more content…
REHABILITATION 3 crime.” Unfortunately, crime rates did not decline drastically even with the increased number of criminals being incarcerated. What is being ignored is the fact that between 15-20% of prisoners are mentally ill but they are not getting the help they need due to limited resources. Professionals working in the mental health field are not often employed by prisons because of budget constraints. It does not help either that the prison environment is conducive to negative behavior, and for many already unstable individuals, rehabilitation seems an almost unrealistic goal. Even the prisoners who were somewhat psychologically healthy before they entered the prison system, have a difficult time not becoming mentally unhinged after some time. While I maintain my belief that a criminal must serve whatever sentence is imposed upon he or she, including a prison sentence, I feel that communities need to press for appropriately implemented work programs for non-violent candidates, better education of the public regarding the major causes for juvenile crime and what society can do to improve the situation, access to quality psychotherapy for prisoners, and programs meant to ease the transition from prison to the free