IntroductionImprisonment and its effectiveness have been the subject of great debate in recent years. Prisons were seen as a means of social control and this has increased further over the last 20 years in the UK and especially the US. We rely on imprisonment while remaining blind to the falsity of our assumptions about its role and effectiveness. As Garland (1990) has argued, limited to its technical functions, imprisonment does not work; there are other institutions far better placed to deliver outcomes such as “reparation,” “inclusion,” or “correction.” Yet public consent to the increasing use of imprisonment rests at least largely on these narrow, technical, and unproven grounds (Useem et al 2003). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Thus, we need to think about the extent to which a prison helps in the rehabilitation of offenders and their successful resocialization into society and take necessary steps to prevent recidivism. We must also consider alternatives such as restorative justice, which has been shown to be effective in dealing with minor offenses and creating friendly relationships between offender and victim through a sense of mutual understanding. Of course, this cannot apply to serious crimes such as murder, sexual offenses, etc. This plays a vital role in the rehabilitation and reformation of the offender by making him understand the effect he has had on the victim and the seriousness of his crime. There is no denying the fact that states are less likely to abandon prisons. The main focus, therefore, should be on how to improve the prison system by making reforms in the state prison system, understanding what works and what needs to be eliminated. . For example, the sentence of imprisonment should only be imposed in cases where it is necessary for the rehabilitation and reformation of the offender. First, we need to understand the concept of punishment and the reasoning behind it. For many philosophers and most ordinary people, justification lies simply in the idea that the punishment is considered deserved for the offense, in which case it is termed retributive punishment. For others, it is based on a practical or instrumental benefit aimed at dissuading its repetition or neutralizing the offender, which means preventing him from repeating the act, either by locking him up or by removing the means. to do it. While others suggest that we punish primarily to express social disapproval or “denunciation.” In the current scenario, the focus is on the offender doing good or rehabilitating him by participating in a counseling, education or training program. Yet even in the lightest form of rehabilitation, offenders will be subjected to a degree of duress that may be embarrassing or be something they would not do voluntarily. Thus, punishment usually amounts to some form of deprivation of liberty, time or money and sometimes even social status. Imprisonment has a huge impact on the individual, particularly psychologically. In a landmark study of the prison environment, Gresham Sykes (1958) identified five main pains of imprisonment. It was: Loss of freedom. Deprivation of social goods and services (choices, amenities and material possessions). Frustration of sexual desire. Deprivation of autonomy (regime of routine, work, activities, insignificant and seemingly meaningless restrictions). Deprivation of security (forcedassociation with other unpredictable prisoners, causing fear and anxiety). Sykes (1958) argued that imprisonment cannot be seen solely as a loss of personal freedom, but that considerable injury lies in the deprivation and frustration that accompany the withdrawal of freedom, such as isolation from the community . , lack of sex, etc. He also said that the attack on the ego and self-esteem has serious psychological consequences on a prisoner. For Goffman (1961), it was about the micro-humiliations and attacks against oneself imposed by the “total institution”; for Cohen and Taylor (1972), it was the existential anxieties about identity, survival, and change brought about by long-term detention. In such stories, the prison appears almost as a metaphor for deprivation and domination. Cohen and Taylor used stories of extreme survival to draw parallels with the experiences of their research participants. Goffman classified the prison, the mental asylum, and the military institution as places designed to mortify oneself. Sykes himself pointed out the similarities between the maximum security prison, the concentration camp and the Soviet labor colony, describing the former as "the new Leviathan", "a social system in which attempts are made to create and maintain a total or almost total social system. control” (1958). In the current context, prisons have become less difficult than in the past. prisoners are treated more gently and humanely, but prisons have become more difficult for prisoners in other ways. Travel is more restricted, security is reinforced and risk has become the system's asset. Prisons are more materially comfortable, but they remain psychologically damaging. For long-term prisoners, once conditions reach a certain level, they cause less consternation than difficulties in progressing through the system. The prison experience is less directly oppressive, but more captivating – lighter but tighter. Instead of brutalizing, destroying and denying the self, he seizes it, exploits it and appropriates it for his own project. This transforms the self into a vehicle of power rather than a place of last refuge. (Ben Crewe, 2011)Another factor that impacts the prisoner is the lack of personal security and feelings of vulnerability. Living with other offenders who have been convicted of murder, robbery and other serious crimes creates a constant feeling of fear and insecurity in the prisoner's mind. Young inmates are said to be more likely to be victims than other inmates in a prison. In a prison, acts of aggression towards others are seen as a means of establishing authority or dominance. There is a constant power struggle between gangs and groups, which often leads to conflict. Life in prison is difficult and every day is considered a struggle. Invariably, people join groups to seek "protection" and companionship, but they end up being influenced by the group's ideologies and engaging in criminogenic activities. Another recognized problem in prison is drug use which defeats the purpose of rehabilitation and causes relapses among those who have been imprisoned for drug-related offenses. We can see that life imprisonment has a serious impact on the prisoner, more psychologically than physically. This makes it difficult for the prisoner to live a normal life after what he has experienced. Another concern is then how society perceives these ex-inmates upon their release. They have difficulty finding aemployment, housing and, to some extent, they are even ostracized from society, labeling them as criminals. For this reason, they disconnect and often try to escape reality or turn to crime. To understand offender rehabilitation methodologies and what might be the most appropriate way to bring about reform in an offender, we must take the example of two states that could be characterized as radically opposed in their rehabilitation methodologies and in the how they apply them in the real world, namely the United States of America prison system and the Norwegian prison system. These prison systems were selected solely because of the two countries' very contrasting beliefs regarding the reintegration of offenders and the difference in their approach to this. Norway is trying to solve a social problem rather than harming the offender, a far cry from the United States which sees incarceration as the price for committing a crime. These two ideologies are deeply interesting in how these states pursue a common goal, but with two different ways to achieve it, and which one is more effective in achieving that goal. Since the 1990s, there has been a movement within the U.S. government to get tougher on crimes and impose stricter penalties for crimes. Because of this, the imprisonment rate in the United States has increased significantly, causing prisons to fill to maximum capacity. The trend continues even in the current scenario. In the United States, prisons tend to be more regulated and prisoners' movements are more restricted. There is crime within the prison walls, drug use is widespread, and gang conflict is quite common. Prison guards are said to be more distant towards prisoners and are not expected to socialize with them. It has also been said that prison guards do not treat prisoners with respect and often tend to intimidate or oppress them. Prisoners have little time for recreation and exercise and have very few amenities in their prison cells. Prisoners have little to no privacy as their personal belongings are regularly checked for contraband. They have limited access to education and entertainment. Things pile up, as prisoners are isolated and often find themselves in a state where they cannot communicate with anyone or live in constant fear of danger, making them face many psychological problems that are not correctly processed by the system. There is often discontent among inmates with prison guards. To check the abuse of power by prison guards, security cameras were installed in various prisons, which increased the security of prisoners and their rights. The American prison system focuses on the first part of justice which is imprisoning them. but makes no effort to deal with the back end of the system, which is to reduce the likely risk of them reoffending or re-offending as well as their release from prison after welfare. Prisoner recidivism statistics show that approximately 68% of released prisoners were arrested within 3 years, 79% within 6 years, and 83% within 9 years (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2018 ). After their release from prison, it becomes very difficult for ex-prisoners to find housing, work and live a normal life, given their record. To some extent, society labels them as criminals. In 2016, 2,162,400 people wereincarcerated in the American prison system, the highest in the world. The US government also spends a lot of money on the country's prison system, approximately $71 billion per year, which has been widely criticized by the public due to the lack of results in the proper rehabilitation and reform of inmates and to make them more effective. a better member of society. In Norwegian prisons in the 1980s and early 1990s, there was little cooperation between inmates. Prisoners engaged in drug use and other antisocial behavior and did not respond well to rehabilitation programs. Their incarceration model increased psychiatric problems among inmates and the increased risk of recidivism was approximately 60-70%. This was a source of concern and since the early 1990s the Norwegian prison system has undergone a significant transformation. Since then, “punishment is the restriction of freedom”. is considered the guiding principle of the Norwegian prison system. In Norway, deprivation of liberty itself is considered a serious punishment, but the prison system nevertheless seeks to provide as much freedom as possible to its offenders. Instead of seeking retaliation, the Norwegian state views crime as a social problem and seeks to repair the damage caused by crime rather than punish those responsible, also known as restorative justice. Bastoy and Halden prisons compete for the title of best prisons in the country. world. Bastoy Prison was nicknamed “the most beautiful prison in the world”. by CNN They use a graduation system from high security to lower security, then to a halfway house after which they will be reintegrated into society. In Bastoy prison, the main emphasis is on rehabilitation rather than punishment. There are no bars on the windows, the kitchens are well equipped even with sharp knives for cooking. Situated on an island, the prison has no walls or fences and inmates have keys to their own rooms with appropriate furniture, they can undertake work of their choosing, eat what they want and move freely around the prison. 'establishment. Inmates have access to higher education programs such as master's and even doctoral programs. This education aims to be useful during reintegration into society. Prisoners can seek help from mental health professionals, participate in anger management programs, and even learn to cook. The goal of the system is to rehabilitate the offender while imposing as few restrictions as possible. The relationship between inmates and prison guards is one of trust and friendship between them. Only a handful of guards remain on the island at the end of the day, and prisoners sometimes keep their jobs while serving their sentences. The justice system not only looks after its prisoners during their sentence, it also helps them reintegrate into society by working alongside other agencies to ensure that former prisoners have housing, work and access to a support system. In Norway, the maximum prison sentence that can be imposed on a prisoner is 21 years, which can be extended by the judge for up to 5 years at a time. There is no death penalty since it was abolished in 1979. The 21-year prison sentence was handed down to Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik. Even in the face of such a serious crime, there has been no discontent among the Norwegian population, no public demands for harsher punishment, or calls for change. to the system.