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72 Book reviews
Measurement and Evaluation in Human PerformanceJames R. Morrow, Allen W. Jackson, James D. Disch, DaleP. Mood, 3rd ed., Human Kinetics, 2005, 398 pages, £44.00,ISBN 0-7360-5540-1
This book introduces the measurement of human per-formance in the sporting and non-medical environment.However, as it is primarily targeted at students and teachersof physical activity in the USA, its value to physiotherapistson this side of the Atlantic is likely to be limited. Many ofthe examples used to illustrate points relate to sports such asbaseball, American football or softball, or to the Americaneducation system. As a consequence, the terminology maybe unfamiliar and the reader may have difficulty completingsome of the tasks if unfamiliar with the American sportingscene. In addition, the authors do not use the metric system,which may be inappropriate for many European readers.
This book is easy to read, attractively produced and hasclearly displayed tables, figures and photographs. The firsthalf of the book, arguably the most useful for physiother-apists, addresses the evaluation and analysis of data gainedfrom human performance, providing a welcome revision ofbasic statistics. It also introduces SPSS (Statistical Packagefor Social Sciences) for analysing data, which is useful forthose wanting to develop an understanding of this software.The early chapters would be particularly helpful to thosep
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Statistics in Kinesiology, 3rd ed.William J. Vincent, Human Kinetics, 2005, 328 pages, £20.50(paperback), ISBN 0-7360-5792-7
This book, now in its third edition, contains sufficientdetail whilst being a manageable size for reference. Thetext covers the statistical management of data generated byanalysis of human movement, particularly pertinent to phys-iotherapy research. The author comes from a sports sciencebackground and many of the examples used are from thisfield.
The first chapter describes some of the terminology andconcepts used in subsequent chapters, discussing levels ofmeasurement, hypothesis testing, dependent and independentvariables, statistical inference, reliability and validity etc. Thefollowing chapters cover topics such as how to organise anddisplay data, measures of central tendency and dispersion,normality and sampling error. The remainder of the bookexplains different types of parametric analyses and specifictests, from basic correlations to multiple regressions and fromt-tests to ANCOVA or MANOVA. A further chapter coversnon-parametric analysis.
The author’s stated aims are to give the reader a betterunderstanding of how a computer calculates statistical tests,so that appropriate analyses can be chosen and interpretationsmade with more confidence. Although, at first glance, thet learlye
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lanning to undertake small research projects.The second half of the book concentrates on metho
easuring physical fitness in people of all age rangesssessing the motor and psychological skills used in snless you are working in a sporting environment, inlikely to be of particular interest. The text covers a stantial range of tests and methods of evaluation but doexplore any aspect in depth.
This book could be recommended as a reference teniversity libraries, and it has some value to physiothists interested in general and sporting physical activity. Andergraduate students will find the sections on statisticselpful, although the use of the imperial system of unitsides some limitations.
Marion TrewUniversity of Brighton, School of Health ProfessionsRobert Dodd Building, 49 Darley Road, Eastbourne
East Sussex BN20 7UR, UKE-mail address: [email protected]
oi:10.1016/j.physio.2005.03.006
ext contains a large number of equations, these are cxplained step by step with diagrams and figures.
This book would be useful for those who want a grenderstanding of research methods, particularly repeeasures designs commonly used for human movemen
sis. It is also a very useful reference to guide the choictatistical test and decisions on the most appropriate sical model for a given experimental design. The deciree inside the front cover, in addition to the accessibleogical layout of the text, provides a greater depth of untanding on which to base the choice of test. This book we useful both to the individual and as a reference bookepartmental library for students at both undergraduateostgraduate level.
Nicola PhillipsPostgraduate Healthcare Studies, Cardiff University
Room 3.39, Ty Dewi Sant, Heath ParkCardiff CF14 4XN, UK
E-mail address: [email protected]
oi:10.1016/j.physio.2005.04.003
