General deterrence seeks to prevent others from committing crimes similar to the one for which a particular offender is being sentenced by making an example of the person.

• A. Specific deterrence
• B. General deterrence
• C. Incapacitation
• D. Rehabilitation

Answer: (B)

General deterrence is the idea of discouraging crime in the larger population by making an example of offenders who are punished. The sentence serves as a signal to others that the costs of committing similar crimes are high, aiming to influence behavior beyond the person being punished. This relies on people perceiving that punishment is certain and timely enough to outweigh the perceived benefits of crime. This differs from specific deterrence, which is about preventing the punished individual from reoffending. Incapacitation focuses on removing the offender from society to reduce opportunities for crime, regardless of its effect on others. Rehabilitation aims to reform the offender to reduce future criminal behavior. Since the emphasis here is on making an example to deter others, this is general deterrence.