Juvenile Justice Administration
Q1
The hedonistic calculus posits that the actions of people tend to be influenced by the act’s value based on the ratio of pleasure to pain. Therefore, in making decisions, people seek make decisions that that will specifically provide them with more happiness than pain or harm. It is not reasonable for juveniles to engage in this process when about to do something, including delinquency. This is because some of them derive pleasure in committing delinquent acts, and as such, they will always choose these kinds of behaviors since they give them pleasure.
Q2
The thought of punishment does not necessarily deter juvenile behavior. There are many instances where juveniles have been punished by the criminal justice system by, for instance, being imprisoned, but gone on to reoffend after being released from prison.
Q3
Rehabilitation is not morally superior to punishment. There is one moral truth: people are obliged to maintain the reliability of their moral behaviors, particularly as it pertains to adherence to criminal law. When a person commits a culpable criminal act, nonetheless, he shows that he has failed to uphold his moral obligations to the required degree, and the government secures a moral authority to enforce measures to strengthen his sense of justice, and punishment is one of them. Therefore, it cannot be perceived that punishment is of lesser morality.
Q4
Without Freud, it would be difficult to explain criminal behavior, and as such, it would be hard to understand why juveniles behave the way they do. Therefore, the juvenile system would not be able to come up with policies and strategies to help juveniles reform.
Q5
Not having to cut the grass for a week would be positive reinforcement. This is because it serves to encourage me to continue getting good grades. Making me stand on a street corner is negative reinforcement. This is because they are making me do something unpleasant so as to discourage me from doing poorly in school.
