Punishment

In society, punishment is the practice of imposing something unpleasant on a wrongdoer. Most often, criminals are punished by fines or prison. Children are also punished by their parents, guardians, or teachers.

A particularly harsh punishment is called draconian.

In operant conditioning, punishment is the presentation of a stimulus contingent on a response which results in a decrease in response strength (as evidenced by a decrease in the frequency of response). The effectiveness of punishment in suppressing the response depends on many factors, including the intensity of the stimulus and the consistency with which the stimulus is presented when the response occurs. In parenting, additional factors that increase the effectiveness of punishment include a verbal explanation of the reason for the punishment and a good relationship between the parent and the child. Punishment can be divided into two types: Positive punishment is the application of an aversive stimulus. Negative punishment is the removal of a desired condition.

Common punishments

Common judicial punishments for criminals:

• fines
• imprisonment
• corporal punishment (legal in some countries, usually taking the form of whipping or caning, banned in other countries)
• capital punishment (legal in some countries, banned in other countries - see use of death penalty worldwide)

Common punishments for children by their parents, guardians or teachers:

• time-outs
• grounding
• temporary removal of privileges (e.g. TV or PC use)
• extra chores
• writing lines
• corporal punishment (e.g. spanking) (banned in some countries)

Possible reasons for judicial punishment

See also: Criminal justice

Deterrence

Deterrence means dissuading someone from future wrongdoing, by making the punishment severe enough that the benefit gained from the offense is outweighed by the cost (and probability) of the punishment.

Deterrence is a very common reason given for why someone should be punished.

Rehabilitation

Some punishment includes work to reform the wrongdoer so that they will not commit the offense again. This is different from deterrence, in that the goal here is to change the offender's attitude to what they have done, and make them come to accept that their behaviour was wrong.

Incapacitation

In the prison system, punishment has the effect of incapacitating the prisoner, and physically preventing him from committing crimes against those outside. The most dangerous criminals may be sentenced to life imprisonment for this reason.

The death penalty also may be invoked for this reason.

Retributive justice

Retribution is the practice of "getting even" with a wrongdoer - the suffering of the wrongdoer is seen as good in itself, even if it has no other benefits.