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Statistical Methods For Spatial Data Analysis

The book provides a comprehensive overview of statistical methods for spatial data analysis. It clearly explains the concepts and includes examples from various disciplines. Each chapter also includes problems to help readers apply the methods.

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533 views

Statistical Methods For Spatial Data Analysis

The book provides a comprehensive overview of statistical methods for spatial data analysis. It clearly explains the concepts and includes examples from various disciplines. Each chapter also includes problems to help readers apply the methods.

Uploaded by

sakali ali
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Statistical Methods for Spatial Data Analysis

Article  in  Mathematical Geology · May 2006


DOI: 10.1007/s11004-006-9035-y

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Statistical Methods for
Book Review Spatial Data Analysis

Oliver Schabenberger and Carol A. Gotway


(Chapman & Hall/CRC Press) 2005, 488 pages. ISBN
1-58488-322-7. Hard cover only.

Statistical Methods for Spatial Data Analysis offers plenty of infor- mathematics. Each chapter ends with problems that encourage
mation for the analysis of spatial data in a variety of disciplines. the readers/students to apply the statistical methods described to
It is clearly written and well organized. The chapters are highly a specific problem.
topical and come at a time when the literature on statistical The book contains nine chapters. The introductory chapter
methods for spatial data analysis is steadily growing. Interesting provides the needed background on the characteristics and types of
and relevant to the readership of the URISA Journal, this book spatial data, and the nature of spatial processes and patterns such
is a valuable resource for educators, students, geographic infor- as autocorrelation functions and the effects of autocorrelation on
mation system (GIS) practitioners, and spatial scientists from statistical inference. Chapter 2 describes the theoretical framework
varying disciplines. of random fields necessary for subsequent chapters, particularly
The aim of the book is ambitious: comprehensive and il- Chapters 4 and 5. Chapter 3 covers point-pattern analysis with a
lustrative compilation of the basic statistical theory and methods well-named title, “Mapped Point Patterns.” The authors should
for spatial data analysis. Few books on the subject of statistical be congratulated on doing such a solid job of including the
methods for spatial data analysis describe the methods in a thor- relevant spatial processes and techniques applicable to point-
ough yet accessible manner. This text stands out because of its pattern analysis. Chapter 4 primarily deals with semivariogram,
comprehensive coverage of a wide range of statistical methods estimation, and modeling of the covariance function. Chapter 5
and spatial analysis techniques. covers spatial prediction and kriging. In this chapter, the authors
One of the book’s main strengths is the clear organization elaborate on general details of the spatial prediction problem and
of its chapters. Each chapter starts with an explanation of the give an extensive overview of kriging, with comparisons such as
theory with well-chosen examples explaining the statistical local versus global kriging. They also cover trend surface models
method. Most of the examples use simplified real-world datasets with illustrations. Chapter 6 is a comprehensive coverage of spatial
and sometimes hypothetical datasets with a few exceptions. For regression models, beginning with linear models with uncorrelated
example, the woodpecker data, lightning-strikes data, rainfall errors and ending with a succinct discussion of Bayesian hierar-
data, and low-birth-weight data represent a variety of disciplines, chical models for spatial data. Chapter 7 describes simulation of
which makes the book very useful for scientists across disciplines. random fields, followed by Chapter 8 on nonstationary covari-
Necessary equations are provided for each method with a wealth ance. The final chapter on spatiotemporal processes primarily
of informative figures, which contribute substantially to develop- deals with separable and nonseparable covariance functions and
ing a better understanding of the methods described. As could be spatiotemporal point processes.
expected for a book of this nature, it includes a fair amount of Each of the various statistical methods is described in consid-

URISA Journal • Book Review 57


erable depth. The book’s main strength is that it describes basic datasets used in the text and the software codes to implement the
statistical concepts for spatial data analysis and explains them and principal methods described.
their relevance clearly in a single volume in a consistent manner. Although the GIS may not be absolutely necessary for spatial
Most spatial analysis textbooks do not cover the relevant statistical analysis and spatial statistics, it can facilitate such an analysis and
concepts. This book demonstrates that spatial analysis requires moreover can provide insights that might otherwise be missed.
a consistent recognition of basic statistical theory and methods The way this book is structured, it misses the issues associated with
for spatial data analysis. Including simulation techniques as one mathematical modeling and GIS and research oriented towards
solid chapter in the book is a very good addition for this subject is the linkages between spatial analysis and GIS. A chapter just dedi-
often overlooked in most other textbooks on spatial statistics. The cated to the integration of spatial analysis and GIS could stimulate
subject index of the book serves as a glossary of spatial methods the interest of readers in quantitative spatial science, particularly
in alphabetical order. exploratory and visual types of analysis. This would diverge from
While applying the statistical methods to a specific problem the main goal of the book, which is covering the common spatial
at the end of each chapter is a very meaningful and helpful way theories and statistical methods in detail. But it could definitely
of better understanding the concepts, especially when worked help the GIS-user readers to strengthen their spatial analysis skills
into course material, unfortunately, having no answer key makes by using the concepts explained in this book.
it harder for readers, when they are not using the book in a class This book will be most useful as a textbook for graduate
setting. Maybe the answer key could be provided in the CRC Press spatial statistics courses. I highly recommend it for educators. It
Web Site along with the other materials in the book. can be used as a textbook in a variety of disciplines. Schabenberger
A shortcoming of the book is that other than SAS/STAT and and Gotway are to be congratulated on bringing together a valu-
S+ software, there is little reference made to software that might able addition to the spatial statistics and spatial analysis literature.
be used to carry out the spatial statistics described. When used Production by publishers Chapman & Hall/CRC Press is to a
in a course setting, this would be the task of the instructor, but high standard, with an attractive cover and a high quality of print.
for others using the book as a reference, it will take considerable No doubt, this book will make statistical methods for spatial data
effort to identify how GIS and related software has implemented analysis useful for scientists across many disciplines.
the various techniques. Although most commercial GIS software
does not include many of the statistical techniques referred to in Reviewed by
the text, the use of a statistical software package is pretty much Esra Ozdenerol, PhD
a requirement to carry out many of the techniques covered in Assistant Professor
the book. This is not really a weakness of the book itself, but Department of Earth Sciences
simply the reality of how most spatial statistics software has been University of Memphis
developed on and with a GIS platform. But it is promising and Memphis, TN 38152
encouraging that the material in the book will be supplemented [email protected]
with the CRC Press Web site, which will provide many of the

58 URISA Journal • Vol. 18, No. 2 • 2006

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