or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
Express Checkout with PayPhrase
What's this? | Create PayPhrase
Sorry!
More Buying Choices
43 used & new from $15.00

Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Heroes and Cowards: The Social Face of War
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I’d like to read this book on Kindle

Don’t have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.
 
  

Heroes and Cowards: The Social Face of War (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Matthew E. Kahn (Author)
Key Phrases: desertion probabilities, birthplace diversity, details about the statistical model, Civil War, World War, New York City (more...)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

List Price: $27.95
Price: $20.40 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $7.55 (27%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Want it delivered Thursday, November 12? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
31 new from $15.00 12 used from $16.00

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with The Great Meadow: Farmers and the Land in Colonial Concord by Mr. Brian Donahue

Heroes and Cowards: The Social Face of War + The Great Meadow: Farmers and the Land in Colonial Concord
  • This item: Heroes and Cowards: The Social Face of War by Dora L. Costa

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Great Meadow: Farmers and the Land in Colonial Concord by Mr. Brian Donahue

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details


Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

A Savage Conflict: The Decisive Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War (Civil War America)

A Savage Conflict: The Decisive Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War (Civil War America)

by Daniel E. Sutherland
4.8 out of 5 stars (4)  $23.10
Deliver Us from Evil: The Slavery Question in the Old South

Deliver Us from Evil: The Slavery Question in the Old South

by Lacy K. Ford
$25.16
In the Trenches at Petersburg: Field Fortifications and Confederate Defeat (Civil War America)

In the Trenches at Petersburg: Field Fortifications and Confederate Defeat (Civil War America)

by Earl J. Hess
5.0 out of 5 stars (4)  $29.70
Wars within a War: Controversy and Conflict over the American Civil War (Civil War America)

Wars within a War: Controversy and Conflict over the American Civil War (Civil War America)

by Joan Waugh
3.5 out of 5 stars (2)  $19.80
Up from History: The Life of Booker T. Washington

Up from History: The Life of Booker T. Washington

by Robert J. Norrell
4.1 out of 5 stars (7)  $23.10
Explore similar items

Editorial Reviews

Review

Heroes and Cowards is interesting to read. . . . It is a work of military sociology written with one eye on the debate about the social costs of diversity. . . . Ms. Costa and Mr. Kahn emphasize the advantages of trust and mutual sacrifice that come from social similarity. They understand full well the contemporary implications of their historical study. When we contemplate helping others, whether through volunteer organizations or welfare--state transfers, we are less likely to provide for--and more likely to abandon--those who are unlike ourselves.
(David Courtwright Wall Street Journal )

This is brilliant social science, dealing with key themes by means of powerful methods used on a superb database. The authors are economic historians skilled in quantitative analysis who investigate social factors that caused Union soldiers to act as heroes or cowards during the Civil War.
(Choice )

Heroes and Cowards highlights the inherent tensions between the costs and benefits of community diversity, shedding light on how groups and societies behave and providing valuable lessons for the present day.
(Spartacus Educational )

In their new book Heroes and Cowards, economists Dora Costa and Matthew Kahn use the Civil War as their laboratory to study what men will do in the name of friendship. They find that men serving in companies with tight social connections--like shared birthplace and occupation--were more likely to stand and fight than those in less tight-knit companies, where desertion rates were up to four times higher.
(Ray Fisman Slate.com )


Review

This impressive study, based on a random sample of forty thousand Civil War soldiers both black and white, reaches important conclusions about their motivation and behavior. Its most significant findings emphasize the role of close social networks within companies and regiments in promoting combat performance, preventing desertion, and increasing survival rates in POW camps. Readable and accessible to nonspecialists, this book should find a wide audience among those interested in the Civil War as well as group behavior more generally.
(James McPherson, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Battle Cry of Freedom" )

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Princeton University Press; illustrated edition edition (December 8, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0691137048
  • ISBN-13: 978-0691137049
  • Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #496,593 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

More About the Author

Dora L. Costa
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Visit Amazon's Dora L. Costa Page

Inside This Book (learn more)

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Heroes and Cowards: The Social Face of War
97% buy the item featured on this page:
Heroes and Cowards: The Social Face of War 5.0 out of 5 stars (1)
$20.40
Europe Between the Oceans: 9000 BC-AD 1000
1% buy
Europe Between the Oceans: 9000 BC-AD 1000 4.5 out of 5 stars (22)
$29.70
Green Cities: Urban Growth And the Environment
1% buy
Green Cities: Urban Growth And the Environment 4.0 out of 5 stars (2)
$14.25

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product).
 
(13)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

 

Customer Reviews

1 Review
5 star:
 (1)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The Authors Did Their Homework, January 22, 2009
Scholarly work on the social impacts at home and within national disunity of family members and fellow citizens going off to war. Costa and Kahn summarized their large research into a very readable book that retains the respectability of a fine academic work.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews



Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   



So You'd Like to...


Create a guide

Product Information from the Amapedia Community

Beta (What's this?)


Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject

 

Feedback

If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us.
 Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
Is there any other feedback you would like to provide?

Your comments can help make our site better for everyone.


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.