THIS IS PARTICULARLY TRUE OF PENAL SANCTIONS IN PREVENTING CRIMINAL ACTS ON THE PART OF POTENTIAL OFFENDERS, WHO WOULD OTHERWISE BE IMPERVIOUS TO MORAL IMPERATIVES OR INNER RESISTANCE MECHANISMS. THE STATE SENDS MESSAGES TO SOCIETY IN THE FORM OF THE PROVISIONS OF CRIMINAL CODES AND THE CERTAIN AND SWIFT APPLICATION OF THE PENALTIES PRESCRIBED FOR THE VARIOUS TYPES OF CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR. THE RADICAL CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORIES OF THE PRE-1960 PERIOD, WHICH DENIED THE VALIDITY OF PENAL SANCTIONS AS CRIME PREVENTION MEASURES, ARE NOW BEING QUESTIONED, AND THE THREAT OF PENAL SANCTIONS IS SEEN AS EFFECTIVE IN RESTRAINING POTENTIAL CRIMINALS BY WORKING AT THE CONSCIOUS AND UNCONSCIOUS LEVEL. THE DETERRENT EFFECT OF CERTAIN AND SEVERE PENALTIES IS ESPECIALLY NOTICEABLE WITH REGARD TO 'MALA PROHIBITA' (ACTS CRIMININALIZED BY LAW BUT TOLERATED BY SOCIETY), WHILE 'MALA PER SE' (ACTS UNIVERSALLY PERCEIVED AS EVIL IN THEMSELVES, SUCH AS HOMICIDE, THEFT, AND RAPE) ARE ALREADY RESTRAINED BY THE FORCE OF SOCIETAL CONDEMNATION AND THE INDIVIDUAL CONSCIENCE. POTENTIAL CRIMINALS CONTEMPLATING IN COLD BLOOD CRIMES MOTIVATED BY HOPES OF PERSONAL GAIN ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE DETERRED BY THE PROSPECT OF PENAL SANCTIONS THAN PSYCHOPATHIC PERSONALITIES OR PERPETRATORS OF SO-CALLED CRIMES OF PASSION. THE FACT THAT WOMEN ARE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO PREVENTIVE DETERRENCE THAN MEN IS POSSIBLY SIGNIFICANT. THE RENEWED INTEREST, ON THE PART OF CRIMINOLOGISTS, IN PENAL SANCTIONS AS A CRIME PREVENTION MEASURE IS INDEED A POSITIVE SIGN. AN EXTENSIVE INTERNATIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY IS APPENDED. --IN ITALIAN. (LGR)