Book Review: Walker, J. T., & Madden, S. (2005). Statistics in Criminology and Criminal Justice: Analysis and Interpretation (2nd ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett. pp. xi, 423

• Author: Mike Vuolo
• DOI: 10.1177/0734016808314555
• Published date: 01 March 2008
• Date: 01 March 2008
• Subject Matter: Articles

the handbook put out by the National Academy of Sciences (Existing and Potential Standoff

Explosives Detection Techniques, National Research Council, National Academies Press,

Washington, DC, 2004), which provides detailed theoretical information on chemical

explosive compositions, detection techniques, and the like. Captain Brodie’s book provides

detailed practical information on dealing with threats posed by chemical explosives. In this

sense, this book complements other theoretical literature in the field.

The author presents us with a two-edged sword. On the one hand, he paints himself an expert

(which he certainly is) by almost exclusively including examples from his own experience. For

instance, many of the figure captions mention or refer to the author. On the other hand, he does

not provide a thorough review of the work of others. There are in fact no references whatever. I

find this rather telling. Is the author the only person who has dealt with bombs? I think not. From

an intellectual viewpoint this not referencing others seems self-serving. However, the author

may not have intended to produce scholarly treatise. Rather, he appears to have set out to help

colleagues deal with dangerous situations. If this was his objective, he succeeded.

I hope that I have made it clear that this book can be very valuable as a resource for tech-

nicians who have to deal with the practical aspects of chemical explosives. The book contains

many useful figures (almost all photographs of actual situations), and it contains many pro-

cedures (carefully articulated) for dealing with various scenarios. I recommend this book for

the practitioner. However, it may also be of use to the scientist who studies explosives and

who may want to have a tie to the practical matters involved in field activities where real

explosives are (or might be) present.

William L. Dunn

Kansas State University

Walker, J. T., & Madden, S. (2005). Statistics in Criminology

and Criminal Justice: Analysis and Interpretation (2nd ed.).

Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett. pp. xi, 423.

DOI: 10.1177/0734016808314555

Reviewing a statistics textbook such as this one is difficult without the answer to one key

question: who is the intended audience of this textbook? This question is never addressed

in the text. This agnosticism may be intentional on the part of the authors, but to do the

book justice, it must be reviewed from two different points of view: namely, that of an

undergraduate instructor and that of a graduate instructor.

As an introductory text for undergraduates, Walker and Madden do a terrific job of covering

a large breadth of material in a manner that would not put off those unfamiliar with statistics,

which is an unfortunate commonality among social science undergraduates. The material

covered in the first few chapters is an excellent introduction to the link between theory,

research methods, and statistics, even presenting the possibility of a department blending a

research methods and statistics course into one course, rather than two separate courses.

Furthermore, integrating the book’s ability to serve as a research methods and statistics text,

Book Reviews 131