The introductory text is organized into three parts: systems based on common law, on civil law, and on socialist law. After discussing comparative criminal justice as a field of study, the book surveys crime problems and criminal justice agencies in the United States. To illustrate ways other common law systems have adapted to fit individual circumstances, the next chapters focus on England and Nigeria. Descriptions of criminal justice systems in the Federal Republic of Germany, Sweden, and Japan represent civil (or continental) law systems. Concepts emphasized include Western Europe's notable progress toward rehabilitation and noncustodial measures and the influence of the U.S. occupation following World War II on the Japanese system. Chapters on criminal justice in the Soviet Union and Poland show how different paths of historical development affected systems based on the same ideology. Specifically, Eastern European countries have tended to maintain elements of prior continental systems whereas the Soviet Union has rejected the prerevolutionary system. A bibliography of major books in English relating to the eight countries is included.