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New study raises questions about religion as deterrent against criminal behaviour

Somerville

Somerville

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I was going to post this in the Religious Discussions forum until I read the 'sticky'
This forum is dedicated and limited to discussions of religion, faith, and spirituality. Threads/posts critical of religion and spiritual aspects are not allowed here
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I don't know how one can discuss any complex subject without using some 'criticism' - so this topic is here

New study raises questions about religion as deterrent against criminal behaviour

A provocative new study is challenging assumptions about the deterrent effect of religion on criminal behaviour. The U.S. study found that through “purposeful distortion or genuine ignorance,” hardcore criminals often co-opt religious doctrine to justify or further their crimes. The findings could have important implications, the researchers say, for how faith-based services are administered within the corrections system.

Prison ministries shouldn’t just be about presenting religious doctrine because some inmates might take religious teachings to excuse their behaviour, lead author Volkan Topalli, a criminal justice professor at Georgia State University, said in an interview Monday. “People have to understand that presenting religious doctrine to people isn’t enough to change their behaviour,” he said. “(Faith-based services) have to be systematic and about behaviour change — religion has to be a vehicle, rather than the goal.”
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Here's a link to the abstract of the study
With God on my side: The paradoxical relationship between religious belief and criminality among hardcore street offenders

Research has found that many street offenders anticipate an early death, making them less prone to delay gratification, more likely to discount the future costs of crime, and thus more likely to offend. Ironically, many such offenders also hold strong religious convictions, including those related to the punitive afterlife consequences of offending. To reconcile these findings, we interviewed 48 active street offenders to determine their expectation of an early demise, belief in the afterlife, and notions of redemption and punishment. Despite the deterrent effects of religion that have been highlighted in prior research, our results indicate that religion may have a counterintuitive criminogenic effect in certain contexts. Through purposeful distortion or genuine ignorance, the hardcore offenders we interviewed are able to exploit the absolvitory tenets of religious doctrine, neutralizing their fear of death to not only allow but encourage offending. This suggests a number of intriguing consequences for deterrence theory and policy.
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The bolded part is one aspect that I think will require further study and is certainly something that we may 'enjoy' discussing.
 
That assumes that the chosen religion accepts that good people can do bad things and still remain good people. Many religions include this premise, thus allowing the keeping all members (followers?) in good standing, you simply confess your "sins" and you are "saved" (to sin again?). This indeed seems to justify the unjustifiable, you are still a "good person" (and will be judged as such) even if you did very "bad things".
 
Religion, to me, seems like something that helps people express what's already inside of them in another way. In other words, I think religion rarely has a causal effect on behavior. I think people who want to help will use religion to do that and people who want to hurt will use religion to do that as well. This is probably because religious ideas and books can usually be interpreted in a thousand ways and they are rarely based in "objective" truth. As a result, it wouldn't surprise me if religion helped criminals continue their behavior.

It's also unsurprising to me that religious doctrine helps people "neutralize their fear of death." In many cases, you're already dealing with people who both expect to die young and have no fear of death. Therefore, to then promise them eternal salvation in a place significantly better than their life on Earth encourages their unhealthy perspective on death.
 
ttwtt78640 said:
That assumes that the chosen religion accepts that good people can do bad things and still remain good people.
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No, it doesn't. It assumes that the "believers" perceive themselves as worthy of whatever payoff the religion promises them regardless of what the religion actually says or means.
 
The abstract is nebulous. There is nothing to discuss given that "religion" is a very broad statement. Is this about Quakers? Hasidic Jews? Tibetan Buddhists? Mormons? Greek Orthodox? Methodists?
 
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I think it is still a deterrent, for example "Thou shalt not steal your neighbor's wife"
 
Hmmmm...Funny this part of the article....

"hardcore criminals often co-opt religious doctrine to justify or further their crimes."

reminds me of Black Liberation Theology.....I wonder why that is.....?
 
Prison ministries just give inmates something to do to pass the time for the most part and a way for inmates waiting trial/parole hearings to try to make it look like they have turned over a new leaf. People gaming the system are not taking faith seriously so you cannot put it as a failure of faith when those same people re-offend.
 
Fisher said:
Prison ministries just give inmates something to do to pass the time for the most part and a way for inmates waiting trial/parole hearings to try to make it look like they have turned over a new leaf. People gaming the system are not taking faith seriously so you cannot put it as a failure of faith when those same people re-offend.
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You got all that from the OP?
 
RDS said:
I think it is still a deterrent, for example "Thou shalt not steal your neighbor's wife"
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It's only a deterrent if the person believes it. Even then, as pointed out, there are religious where you "confess your sins" and are saved again. Not much of a deterrent if you ask me.
 
Fisher said:
Prison ministries just give inmates something to do to pass the time for the most part and a way for inmates waiting trial/parole hearings to try to make it look like they have turned over a new leaf. People gaming the system are not taking faith seriously so you cannot put it as a failure of faith when those same people re-offend.
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There are legitimately inmates who convert and follow the religion in a virtuous way. I just don't see religion as a "deterrent" to crime in any meaningful way.
 
TheNextEra said:
It's only a deterrent if the person believes it. Even then, as pointed out, there are religious where you "confess your sins" and are saved again. Not much of a deterrent if you ask me.
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The truth is it all boils down to proper upbringing of kids by parents regardless of religion.
 
RDS said:
The truth is it all boils down to proper upbringing of kids by parents regardless of religion.
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Yes, I don't disagree. However, that's like saying "if people don't commit crimes, there won't be criminals". It sounds pretty, but it's pretty meaningless because that isn't the reality of what's happening.
 
j-mac said:
Hmmmm...Funny this part of the article....

"hardcore criminals often co-opt religious doctrine to justify or further their crimes."

reminds me of Black Liberation Theology.....I wonder why that is.....?
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Could tell you but it would get me banned.

But it reminds me of the Christian Church over 2000 years.
 
Somerville said:
I was going to post this in the Religious Discussions forum until I read the 'sticky'


I don't know how one can discuss any complex subject without using some 'criticism' - so this topic is here



Here's a link to the abstract of the study


The bolded part is one aspect that I think will require further study and is certainly something that we may 'enjoy' discussing.
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Considering all the scam artist televangelists and mega church preachers I am not surprised by this part. Jesus didn't own a mule but for some reason God says these preachers need a multimillion dollar mansion, a new satellite dish and so on.


New study raises questions about religion as deterrent against criminal behaviour
A provocative new study is challenging assumptions about the deterrent effect of religion on criminal behaviour. The U.S. study found that through “purposeful distortion or genuine ignorance,” hardcore criminals often co-opt religious doctrine to justify or further their crimes.
 
I think the proper conclusion of this study is that people who have some kind of personality or mood disorder (of whom there are plenty) and who wish to commit crimes aren't stopped by the fact that they subscribe to some religion or other.

Whether religions have a more general deterance, however, isn't challenged by these findings, at least as explained in the abstract.
 
"New study raises questions about religion as deterrent against criminal behaviour!"


One is truly amazed at the enormous variety of ways the homosexuals and atheists come up with to demean the faith of complete strangers. Faith that they themselves lack and don't want others to have.

There must be some sort of award for creativity in their mean, nacissistic little circles of superiority, rage and self-loathing. An award for striking out at those who have found happiness and satisfaction in life through religious faith.
 
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Dumb people are more likely to commit crimes. News at 11.

I'm sure their religious convictions run about as deep as your average Kennedy family "catholic".
 
Ray410 said:
"New study raises questions about religion as deterrent against criminal behaviour!"


One is truly amazed at the enormous variety of ways the homosexuals and atheists come up with to demean the faith of complete strangers. Faith that they themselves lack and don't want others to have.

There must be some sort of award for creativity in their mean, nacissistic little circles of superiority, rage and self-loathing. An award for striking out at those who have found happiness and satisfaction in life through religious faith.
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Most gay people I know believe in God, so you obviously have no clue what you are talking about.
 
Dezaad said:
Most gay people I know believe in God, so you obviously have no clue what you are talking about.
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Earth to Dezaad: Homosexuals have been attacking Christianity for the past thirty years. Those attacks are a virtual full time staple of this forum and all others.
 
I thought it was supposed to be a well-armed citizenry that was a deterrent to criminal behavior.
 
Ray410 said:
Earth to Dezaad: Homosexuals have been attacking Christianity for the past thirty years. Those attacks are a virtual full time staple of this forum and all others.
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I've been involved in an industry which employs many Gays and it seemed to me that they were as religious any other group. If they were far left then, like most leftists, they tended to rubbish Christianity.
 
Grant said:
I've been involved in an industry which employs many Gays and it seemed to me that they were as religious any other group. If they were far left then, like most leftists, they tended to rubbish Christianity.
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Just out of curiousity, what industry would that be that employs many gays?
 
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