Abstract
The main focus of this chapter is to understand the importance of collective approach regarding offender rehabilitation. In order to understand the collective approach as a phenomenon, the chapter will shed some light on the importance of this approach towards the betterment of any society. Some sections of the chapter will also delve into the realm of possible cause/s of the offences committed and will try to address the questions pertaining to the categories of why, how, and what. The scope of this chapter is limited to offences that were freely chosen as a wilful behaviour. Hence the offences perpetrated owing to mental illness, sexual desire, and under the influence of any drugs are beyond the scope of this chapter.
TopBackground/ Contributing Factors
The term ‘offence’ is a polysemous and contradictory one; hence, there is no singular, clear definition to be found in literature and scholars are describing it according to the context (Henry & Lanier, 1998). Yet for the sake of our understanding one may primarily perceive it as a negative event in which two parties are involved: one is the victim and the other is the offender/s. An event can be recorded as a crime only when the offenders adversely impact or harm the victim/s. Owing to its heterogeneous nature; the causes of offence are also multifarious. There are many factors that impact the varieties of offences committed in society, which can be further segregated into the three main factors policy-related, environmental and personal (Table 1).
Table 1. Factors that impact the offences
| Policy factors | Environmental factors | Personal factors |
| Poverty | Low IQ | Single parenting |
| Inequality | Media violence | Lack of parental control |
| Unemployment | Illegitimacy | Child abuse |
| Lack of Education | Drugs | Homelessness |
Source: Created by author from literature
Key Terms in this Chapter
Criminal Behavior: Criminal behavior refers to a behavior of a lawbreaker which leads to and including the commission of an illicit act.
Offence: Offence is understood as some action which outrages the ethical or physical sense.
Personal Factor: Personal factors are the individual factors which strongly influence the crime pattern.
Collective Approach: Collective approach is a shared behavior of a group of people towards the betterment of society.
Practitioners: Individual enthusiastically engaged in a discipline, or occupation, particularly medication or rehabilitation.
Policy Factor: Policy factors are all those factors which have been enforced by administration or government.
Rehabilitation: Rehabilitation is a systematic approach towards the betterment of a criminal.
Crime: Crime is an illegal or prohibited action punishable by an authority or law.