What are the benefits of studying criminal justice systems in other countries? What problems are inherent in such study?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Comparative criminal justice is becoming increasingly valued for the insights it provides. By contrasting native institutions of justice with similar institutions in other countries, procedures and problems that have been taken for granted under one system can be reevaluated in the light of world experience. Such reevaluation may yield information we can use to improve our own system. It is also possible, of course, that such study may lead to the discovery of domestic inequities that would place America in a difficult political position, as some say has happened in the area of the death penalty. Difficulties are often encountered in the comparison of crime rates from one country to another because of differences in the way a specific crime is defined, diversities in crime-reporting practices, and political and other influences on the reporting of statistics to international agencies.

Definitional differences create what may be the biggest problem. For cross-national comparisons of crime data to be meaningful, reported data must share conceptual similarities. Unfortunately, that is rarely the case. Nations report offenses according to the legal criteria by which arrests are made and under which prosecution can occur. When legal criteria differ between nations, data are inherently inaccurate. Social, cultural, and economic differences between countries compound the difficulties.

Reporting practices vary substantially between nations, and no mechanism exists for confirming the accuracy of reported data. Many countries simply do not disclose requested information, and those that do often make only partial reports. International reports of crime are also often delayed. Complete up-to-date data are rare, since the information made available to agencies like the United Nations and Interpol is reported at different times and according to schedules that vary from nation to nation.

Crime statistics also reflect political biases and national values. Some nations do not accurately admit to the frequency of certain kinds of culturally reprehensible crimes. Communist countries, for example, appear loath to report property crimes such as theft, burglary, and robbery because the very existence of such offenses demonstrates felt inequities within the Communist system.