Symbolic Reparation

517 Words2 Pages

EMOTIONAL AND MORAL PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALING (Barton, 2000)
Retzinger and Scheff observed that two things happen in a restorative justice practices (ex. Victim offender mediation); material and symbolic reparation. Material reparation occurs between the offender and victim in a form of settlement, this could be compensation or community service. However, symbolic reparation is less visible and usually takes the form of “gestures and expressions of courtesy, respect, remorse, and forgiveness” (Barton, 2000). These conferences usually require the offender’s apology and the victim’s forgiveness, the key to reconciliation, victim satisfaction and decreased recidivism. The restoration process help to repair and restore a bond between the victim and …show more content…

Conversely, when the offender feels they are being lectured or bullied by others with power, they tend to be defensive. However, the healing process for both the victim and offender is interdependent. Therefore, they rely on each other for the emotional healing process to work.

LOW SELF-CONTROL AND BULLYING (Moon, Hwang & McCluskey, 2011)
Gottfredson and Hirschi developed the low self-control theory in 1990. They determined that criminal behaviour and behaviours similar to crime (ex. Bullying), main source is low self-control.
These individuals usually “seek immediate gratification, they are known to be physically active, insensitive to others and they often possess limited cognitive and academic skills” (Moon, Hwang & McCluskey, 2011). This insensitivity to others was evident in our scenario as Julie and Jane bullied Amanda for over 3 months without thinking of the consequences. Furthermore, their deviant behaviour towards Amanda in front of other children at the school showed their immediate need for gratification. Therefore, Gottfredson and Hirschi reported that effective parenting practices (i.e., monitoring, recognition of deviant behaviors, and punishment of deviant behavior), help children develop self-control (Moon, Hwang & McCluskey,

Open Document