′Cavadino and Dignan′s Penal Systems: A Comparative Approach looks across national boundaries to see how penal systems differ and why. It is hands-down the most comprehensive and up-to-date book on the subject and should become a staple textbook for use in law and social science courses on comparative penal policy and practice′ - Michael H. Tonry,University of Minnesota′This book is an important addition to the literature on punishment. It is a highly reada...

Jumpstart your evil enterprise with this deviously clever step-by-step guide to joining the forces of darkness.Villains may never win, but they sure have more fun. Who doesn't want to hatch a master plan for world domination or set up an evil hideout? In How to Be a Villain, Neil Zawacki answers all the most urgent questions: Should I go with a black or red theme? Do I invest in an army of winged monkeys or ninja warriors? And should I learn to play the pip...

Now in its Sixth Edition, this book remains the most comprehensive and authoritative on the penal system, providing students with an incisive, critical account of the punitive, managerial and humanitarian approaches to criminal justice.Fully updated to cover the most recent changes in the Criminal Justice System, the new edition:Outlines contemporary policy debates on sentencing, staffing, youth custody and overcrowding.Explores growing inequalities in the c...

The age of party democracy has passed, argues Peter Mair in Ruling the Void. The major parties have become so disconnected from society that they no longer seem capable of sustaining democracy in its present form.First published in 2013, Ruling the Void presciently observed that the widening gap between citizens and their political leaders posed a crisis of legitimacy for the governing class, and was fuelling populist mobilizations against it. Europe's political e...

The Canadian system of federalism divides the power to govern between the central federal parliament and the provincial and territorial legislative assemblies. In what can be seen as a double federation, power is also divided culturally, between English and French Canada. The divisions of power and responsibility, however, have not remained static since 1867. The federal language regime (1969), for example, reconfigured cultural federalism, generating constitutional tension as governments ...

Welfare states vary across nations and change over time. And the balance between markets and government; free enterprise and social protection is perennially in question. But all developed societies have welfare states of one kind or another - they are a fundamental dimension of modern government. And even after decades of free-market criticism and reform, their core institutions have proven resilient and popular. This Very Short Introduction describes the modern welfare state, ex...

Regions Apart: The Four Societies of Canada and the United States provides an invaluable social, cultural, and political comparison of the two countries that share the world's longest undefended border. General readers and students alike will find Regions Apart an insightful analysis of how and why Americans and Canadians differ, not only from each other but from region to region within each country. Recognizing the inevitability of the comparison - at least for Canadians! - the authors explo...

As an instrument which addresses the circumstances which affect women's lives and enjoyment of rights in a diverse world, the CEDAW is slowly but surely making its mark on the development of international and national law. Using national case studies from South Asia, Southern Africa, Australia, Canada and Northern Europe, Women's Human Rights examines the potential and actual added value of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in comparison and int...

′Bara and Pennington′s edited volume successfully fills a huge void in the market for introductory textbooks to comparative politics which previously offered either descriptions of political processes and systems or overviews of the methodology of comparative analysis. By applying major political science theories to overviews of the core elements of political systems, the authors both enhance our understanding of these elements and provide readers an excellent introduction to comparative e...

Although a powerful, independent bureaucracy poses a threat to democracy, it is indispensable to its proper functioning. This book provides an overview of the complex relationship between bureaucracy and the politics of democracy and is essential reading for students of sociology, political science and public administration. It is designed to guide students through the maze of classical and modern theories on the topic, to give them basic information on the historical developments in this ...

This book is a comprehensive and critical introduction to the field of gender and crime, re-thinking the key themes and debates within a human rights framework.Integrating empirical, theoretical and policy-related material, this Second Editionhas been significantly updated, and now includes;Full consideration of the 2010-2015 Coalition Government and its effect on gender and crime within England and WalesA new chapter relating crimi...

The project of interpreting contemporary forms of punishment means exploring the social, political, economic, and historical conditions in the society in which those forms arise. The SAGE Handbook of Punishment and Society draws together this disparate and expansive field of punishment and society into one compelling new volume.Headed by two of the leading scholars in the field, Jonathan Simon and Richard Sparks have crafted a comprehensive and definitive resource that illuminates ...