Punitive

Punitive

Punishment (also known as discipline or penalty) is the authoritative imposition of something undesirable or unpleasant on, or the removal of something desirable or pleasant from, a person, animal, organization or entity in response to behavior deemed unacceptable by an individual, group or other entity. The authority may be either a group or a single person, and punishment may be carried out formally under a system of law or informally in other kinds of social settings such as within a family. Negative consequences that are not authorized or that are administered without a breach of rules are not considered to be punishment as defined here. The study and practice of the punishment of crimes, particularly as it applies to imprisonment, is called penology, or, often in modern texts, corrections; in this context, the punishment process is euphemistically called "correctional process". Research into punishment often includes similar research into prevention.

Read more about Punitive.

Famous quotes containing the word punitive:

    America is a nation fundamentally ambivalent about its children, often afraid of its children, and frequently punitive toward its children.
    Letty Cottin Pogrebin (20th century)