For centuries, societies had no trouble stating that the purpose of sentencing was punishment and that punishment was retribution. With the Age of Enlightenment and utilitarian thinking, society recognized three additional goals: deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation. The relative importance of these goals became tied to conservative, liberal, or radical ideology.
In assuming management of a prison, wardens are responsible for perimeter security and maintaining an orderly, secure internal environment. Wardens often regard themselves as administrators, rather than leaders. As wardens become more educated, the formal structure of modern prisons is likely to resemble a large, private organization with an established hierarchy and defined responsibilities.
When governments confine people, they assume certain responsibilities toward them, including provision of constitutional living conditions, thus avoiding law suits and court interventions. Other management issues, such as classification, custody, and control, are also a high priority for modern prisons.
During the last several decades, there has been a move toward professionalization in—moving from custody to control to care. Achieving scientific, uniform, and successful administration of public punishment through professional development is the goal of the American Correctional Association. In this professionalization effort, issues such prison health care, privatization, and diversity of incarcerated populations are the frequent focus of correctional studies.
This Week in Relation to the Course
This week, you focus on the functions, policies, and procedures of corrections. There are many critical pretrial functions that are considered a part of the correctional process. Correctional personnel assist in
