Emotion in Criminal Justice
Although criminal justice professionals strive to maintain and promote ideals of objectivity, emotion will always enter into the equation. No human endeavor can be emotionless, and criminal justice is no exception. Crimes, especially violent ones, can have devastating effects not only on the victim and his or her family, but on the entire community. Anger, fear, vengefulness, sorrow, grief, and even elation can all accompany the criminal justice process. Media hype and other elements contribute to the creation of intense emotion that surrounds the process of criminal justice. The process of criminal justice entails balancing the needs of the community with the needs of the individual victim(s) and the perpetrator(s). To balance these needs, criminal justice officials must occasionally rely on emotional input. Sometimes that emotional input arises from within the professional, in the form of sympathy for the victim, or in many cases, compassion for the suspect. Therefore, one of the most difficult aspects of criminal justice is to create compassionate punishments that fit the crime but that do not overstep the boundaries of justice. All members of the criminal justice system, from officers of the law to judges on their benches, mu
Developing emotions should not be done indiscriminately, though. For criminal justice officials to do their jobs effectively, they must often learn to keep emotions at bay. For example, too much anger can lead to overly harsh treatments of criminals, and too much sympathy can cloud judgment and obscure the needs for community safety. Criminal justice requires a keen balance of reason and emotion, and the profession is unique in its sometimes conflicting demands. A criminal justice official can develop a plan for developing effective use of emotions by first becoming aware of emotions in the first place. Each person is different. Some react stronger than others, some are more prone to anger or sadness than others. Therefore, it is up to the individual to recognize bodily signals and other signs of emotionality. Second, law enforcement officials must learn how to recognize emotions in others. Reading faces and reading emotions in people's voices is essential in the criminal justice process, which deals primarily with people. Third, law enforcement officials have to learn how to control and properly channel emotional energy. Too much emotion can be devastating and inappropriate and can cause poor decision-making. On the other hand, insufficient emotions can lead to cold, hard, cruel, and unusual punishments. In the wake of severe or violent crimes, crimi
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Approximate Word count = 917
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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