AQA GCSE · Question 08.3 · Rights and Responsibilities
Identify two of the purposes of sentencing.
How to approach this question
Recall the different aims of the justice system when it sentences a convicted criminal. List two distinct purposes.
Full Answer
When a court sentences an offender, it is trying to achieve several things. The main purposes of sentencing are:
- **Retribution:** Making the offender 'pay' for their crime.
- **Deterrence:** Putting the offender and others off from committing similar crimes.
- **Rehabilitation:** Helping the offender to change their behaviour and not re-offend.
- **Protection of the public:** Keeping society safe from dangerous offenders, for example by imprisoning them.
- **Reparation:** Making the offender make amends to the victim or society (e.g., through community service).
Common mistakes
Students might give answers that are too similar, for example 'to punish them' and 'to make them pay', which are both essentially retribution. The question asks for two different purposes.
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