Nowadays, without a shadow of a doubt, crime is one of society’s most serious troubles, encouraging people to debate about solutions to this issue. A major part of individuals have the standpoint that longer imprisonment is an effective strategy to reduce the crime rate; nonetheless, another part of people think that there are also more effective ways to solve this problem.
Although longer prison sentences may deter crime to some extent, I believe that tackling the underlying causes through rehabilitation programs is a more effective long-term solution.
On the one hand, longer incarceration can work as a discouraging message to criminals. Strict punishments can increase awareness of the consequences, which may deter individuals from engaging in criminal behavior. To illustrate, Hammurabi, the king of Babylon, is well known as a king with the harshest punishments for crime in the world, and there was no tolerance—even tiny crimes like false testimony had punishments like the death penalty or amputation of the tongue or hands. The idea is clear because stricter punishments make people less willing to break the law, which helps enhance public safety. In this way, longer prison sentences can be considered fair.
On the other hand, imprisonment becomes a normal thing for some people. In light of this fact, longer imprisonment cannot reduce the crime rate at all. The main reason for recidivism is poverty and employers who do not fully trust people who were in jail. The possible way to reduce the rate of recidivism is rehabilitation programs like work and sessions with a psychologist. For instance, countries like Brazil already practice rehabilitation programs, and prisoners can work or study. Due to these programs, in these countries, the recidivism rate is not as high as in other countries.
In conclusion, longer incarceration can also reduce the crime rate; however, rehabilitation programs are a more effective way to tackle this problem.