This book offers a detailed look at 10 “hot topics” in crime and punishment that are shared by many countries. Some of these topics are well-established within the field of criminology, such as patterns of criminal behavior, juvenile delinquency, drug trafficking, policing, and punishment; others are emerging topics that have not been well studied across a variety of countries, such as violence against women, hate crimes, and gun control.

Within each topic, the book explores how eight countries experience the issue, highlighting similarities across different places as well as unique treatments of the problem. The chapter on punishment addresses the widespread use of incarceration as criminal punishment but also considers different philosophies with respect to the purpose of incarceration and whether or not this strategy is effective in the face of large-scale criminal events, such as mass atrocities. The country narratives provide historical context for understanding the particular crime or punishment issue, current trends, and relevant statistical data for describing the extent of the issue and changes over time, in addition to contemporary examples of the issue.

Features

• Allows students to make cross-cultural comparisons with respect to how other countries handle crime and punishment
• Explains how to critically and accurately compare crime and justice issues across countries
• Illustrates how political, economic, and cultural factors shape both the types of crime problems that countries experience and their responses to those problems
• Addresses emerging crime issues like gun control and hate crimes that are not given enough attention as international problems
• Provides a range of examples within each topic area to illustrate the breadth of the issue and the variations across countries
• Highlights important points with examples from current events