Customer Reviews

Head First Statistics

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is my first Head First book, and I was quite impressed. I am a graduate student who has had little to no previous experience in statistics. For the most part, I can complete SPSS analysis with ease and I understand most of the concepts presented in class. However, it dawned on me that there were gaps in my understanding that weren't being adequately explained by my professor or my textbooks. I wanted a real, in-depth understanding of when and why I would use specific methods, not just how to do the methods. This book is a wonderful synthesis that uses current research on how we learn effectively. I love the way that it blends concepts with problem-solving to enforce the connections for long-term retention and comprehension.

(I do have one criticism: it appears that there are some spelling errors and exercise mistakes. They are not overwhelming, and, fortunately, you learn enough to recognize the mistakes, but they should be noted. However, they are so mild, it is not worth spoiling a good review.)

Head First Statistics by Dawn Griffiths has a simple, but infinitely valuable advantage over test preparation guides and other statistics texts for the mathematically challenged. First, like all books in the Head First series it is actually interesting and fun to study, as well as clear and simple. Even more importantly for the psychology or physical science/engineering student, and possibly unique among introductory statistics texts, it explains what each statistic means, what it is good for, where it applies (and doesn't apply), and how to use it in verifying the results of an experiment. Unlike other easy to learn statistics primers, it provides a real introduction to experimental design, as well as being a drill and practice cookbook for test preparation. This book will be an important tool for all students of the experimental sciences.
--Ira Laefsky

I was actually looking at statistics books for a relative who wanted to learn about statistics for his job.

While I have to commend the creators of this guide for an innovative approach, there are some major problems with the mathematics in the book. The worst example I can think of is that of Bayesian analysis (a very important concept, but a rather difficult one to understand). The example is confusingly presented, and, worse still, the method they give for solving the problem is simply wrong, and is actually solving a much simpler problem that does not even require this technique. Quite simply, I cannot understand how any person well-versed in statistics--let alone multiple people--could make errors of this magnitude; in the end, I couldn't justify spending the money for it.

I find writing reviews of the Head First series of books difficult. Not because they are badly written, or because they do not cover the subject matter well. It is simply that they are so good. So let me set the tone by saying: I challenge anyone to find a better book for learning basic probability and statistics!

Head First Statistics was written by a mathematician for non-mathematicians. The author and editors have obviously put in a great deal of effort to create something out of the ordinary. This book is clearly a labour of love, as it is a low effort and fun way to learn probability and statistics!

I studied Mathematics at University, and statistics was something I had little contact with until a first year introduction to the subject. This clear and simple book will take you painlessly from having absolutely no knowledge of probability and statistics, to a level commensurate with university entrance. It stops short of deriving the central limit theorem from first principles, but it will make you aware of what it is and show you how it can be applied. I gained a clear understanding of concepts I had merely glossed over at university over 20 years ago.

This is an interesting and engaging book, written in the Head First series' hallmark style (tells you how, but also shows you why). Even if you have absolutely no knowledge of statistics, it will not be a barrier to gaining an in-depth understanding of basic statistics from this book. I really enjoyed reading this book. Highly Recommended.

I did find a few spelling mistakes, and another reviewer on Amazon pointed out that there were a few mistakes in the exercises (I must confess I didn't work through every single one!).

Disclosure: a copy of this book was supplied by O'Reilly. I did not let that influence this review.

Head First Statistics is an outstanding introduction to statistics for those who need a good nuts-and-bolts guide that explains what the basic statistical operations are, how to use them, and-- most importantly-- where they should be used. It would also be very useful to those who were left dazed and confused by an earlier encounter with a college stats course. This is because it differs so much from most textbooks and reviews guides. In fact, it's actually interesting to read, and the exercises are fun to do. (I know how unlikely that sounds, but it's true!)

The greatest strength of this book is the progressive way it builds understanding by clearly explaining exactly what each statistical function means, what the results of each function shows about the data, and when it should-- and shouldn't-- be applied. By the end, anyone who reads carefully and does the exercises will have a pretty firm grip on the essentials of statistical analysis.

The book is unusual in its concept and design, too. The concepts are served up in easily digestible bites with lots of graphics, useful sidebars containing supplemental information, and exercises based on practical, real-world cases. No math beyond basic algebra is necessary for doing any of the exercises in the book. Finally, the tone is light and conversational, but it isn't at all condescending or cutsie.

This most certainly is not an advanced textbook or a comprehensive reference manual. However, for anyone who needs an introductory text or a review for a stats exam, this is the book to get. I recommend it most highly.

This is my third statistics book. I am taking statistics in college. I failed statistics once and thought I would never, ever pass it or let alone understand it. I went to my local book store and went through book after book, after book and finally decided on this one. I cannot believe I am actually learning statistics. I was so confused and lost that my professor did not even want to bother with me. Anyway, I am not going to ramble on....but this is one hell of a book to learn statistics with. In my opinion it is much better than "Statistics for Dummies" and "Statistics for the Utterly Confused" (I own them as well). If this book can teach me statistics, it can teach anyone statistics.

We're doing an oracle business intelligence implementation at the office and I thought it would be a good idea to get this book to have a better understanding of the whole data analysis/statistics field. Many people think Business Intelligence is all about graphs. Look at one graph, then look at the next one. But this book helps to rubbish that notion. It was funny because even supposedly minor subjects like mean, median and mode were discussed in a way that I believe has made me much smarter because I can tell when to use which. Even an average is not always what it seems. I recommend this book to anyone working on a BI implementation. My only complaint is a few minor calculation mistakes, but the book is so much fun that it doesn't really matter in the end. 5 stars for me.

I was reading Manning & Schutze's lovely book on statistical NLP Foundations of Statistical Natural Language Processing. In chapter 5 they discuss collocations and section 5.3 talks about hypothesis testing. I forgot how one forms the null hypothesis and comes up with a test statistic, so looked up HEAD FIRST STATISTICS (chapter 13). What a clear and lovely example with which Dawn Griffiths has explained hypothesis testing! I could not believe that someone could explain things so clearly! In p.530 he explains the WHY -> "H0, the null hypothesis, is like - putting a prisoner on trial in front of a jury. You only sentence the prisoner if there is strong evidence against him." Lovely! That's the way one should explain things! (I wish I had teachers and professors who had such good understanding of their subjects and could teach them with simple and interesting examples. I would have never fallen asleep in my college lectures!)

I believe in the HEAD FIRST approach to learning and teaching things. Learning should be fun.

I wish every subject has a HEAD FIRST textbook that teaches the basics and lets students develop the understanding and the intuition first. As a college student I did t-test, z-test, etc., without any real understanding! Books like HEAD FIRST STATISTICS do a fantastic job in helping one learn things really really well. WELL DONE!

Hate math? Need to turn data into information? Information into answers? This book is near perfect. Easy to read text, easy to follow examples, easy to understand diagrams. I only wish my stats professors made it this clear. Head First Statistics does an excellent job of making the use of statistics applicable to life...not just to actuaries. Whether you are looking for a book to help you get a better foundation of statistics or one that will help you recall what you learned (or should have learned) in college, I highly recommend this one.

If you need to understand the basics of statistics and statistical concepts, but are terrified of math, then this is probably the book you need to check out. This book moves slowly through basic statistical concepts, using lots of pictures, graphs, and diagrams to make the explanation more meaningful. Again, if mathematics doesn't scare you, you'll be quickly bored by this book. But for those who are scared of math, this is a perfect book to help navigate the world of statistics.

While this book doesn't cover a huge number of concepts (e.g. ANOVA is not covered at all), those it does cover are done well. When complete, the reader should have a good understanding of data visualization, basic statistics (mean, median, mode), the most common sampling distributions, regression analysis, and common parametric tests (including tests based off the normal and chi-square distribution).

All in all, I think this book will be entertaining for most readers, and the material is presented in a way that is engaging and relevant. Most statistics students are naturally confused when discussing probability distributions, but this book presents it in the context of Las Vegas, which makes it much more understandable for the average reader.

While not for everyone, this is a good introductory statistics book that makes difficult concepts much easier to understand. If you have a degree in statistics or are otherwise well-versed in the subject, you likely won't find what you're looking for here. However, those without math-based college degrees will find a fun read and good introduction to the subject of statistics.