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The Joy of Stats: A Short Guide to Introductory Statistics in the Social Sciences
This short but thorough guide approaches statistics with a sense of fun and intellectual excitement. Writing in a relaxed and conversational manner, Garner encourages even the most math-aversive readers to think about statistical material in words and to understand formulas in terms of concepts. This discursive approach to math and an insistence on linking concepts, formulas, and empirical examples in a holistic manner allows readers to choose their own routes to learning math-related ideas. As a stand-alone text, a self-study manual, or a supplement to a lab manual or comprehensive text, The Joy of Stats offers a unique and versatile teaching tool. A "Math-Refresher" section and self-assessment test offer a concise review of all the needed math background. A "How-To?" section provides short handy summaries of data analysis techniques and explains when to apply them. Each chapter offers key terms, numerous examples--including real-world data--practice exercises and answers, and verbal algorithms as well as formulas. The result is an unrivalled guide for students of social science as well as for practitioners and policy-makers.
336 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2005
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January 18, 2021
I know a stats textbook is a slightly odd thing to be reviewing on GoodReads, but it helps me keep track of what books I have, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
"The Joy of Stats" is a unique, if middle-of-the-line, stats textbook. It's unique in that it adopts a relatively conversational tone in an attempt to make the book more engaging. This works well in the first half (core concepts in statistics), but is much less effective in the second (statistical tests).
It's also unique in its organization. The textbook portion itself is only about two thirds of the volume. The final third includes quite substantive sections with exercises, a "math refresher," and an extensive "how to" section on each statistical test introduced. This "how to" section is quite useful, although a little haphazard in organization (e.g., there's a table near the beginning explaining when to use each test, but it doesn't actually include all the tests described).
The downside of this creative organization is that the volume loses readers midway through. From a very accessible introduction, things accelerate rapidly when the actual statistical tests hit. References are made to properties of tests that haven't been introduced yet. And, much of the introduction resides in a later portion of the book rather than the core content. This makes it difficult to read and, in my view, reduces the utility to the learner.
That said, there is a lot to be said for textbooks that attempt to make their subject readable and engaging. I wish that the skill at doing this in the first half carried forward more into both the second half and the organization of the book as a whole.
"The Joy of Stats" is a unique, if middle-of-the-line, stats textbook. It's unique in that it adopts a relatively conversational tone in an attempt to make the book more engaging. This works well in the first half (core concepts in statistics), but is much less effective in the second (statistical tests).
It's also unique in its organization. The textbook portion itself is only about two thirds of the volume. The final third includes quite substantive sections with exercises, a "math refresher," and an extensive "how to" section on each statistical test introduced. This "how to" section is quite useful, although a little haphazard in organization (e.g., there's a table near the beginning explaining when to use each test, but it doesn't actually include all the tests described).
The downside of this creative organization is that the volume loses readers midway through. From a very accessible introduction, things accelerate rapidly when the actual statistical tests hit. References are made to properties of tests that haven't been introduced yet. And, much of the introduction resides in a later portion of the book rather than the core content. This makes it difficult to read and, in my view, reduces the utility to the learner.
That said, there is a lot to be said for textbooks that attempt to make their subject readable and engaging. I wish that the skill at doing this in the first half carried forward more into both the second half and the organization of the book as a whole.
Displaying 1 of 1 review