Of the five dimensions of cohesion must be a constant concern because it is the foundation

The textbook is very through regarding all areas and ideas of the subject. Further, the author presents a clear pedagogical framework: the text applies cognitive load theory, moving, as the writer tells us in the Preface that it will be, "systematically from lower to higher levels of analysis" (p. 3), which, as instructional developers and students, we know is a method that works in acquiring new information and knowledge. The writer is well grounded and has a specific focus in the subject through years of teaching and provides many supportive resources, such as real-life examples, video clips, topic summaries, and exercises, and external website URLs, to name a few. However, there is no index, nor is there a glossary. It would be useful, given the amount of terminology in this textbook, to have two sets of glossaries per chapter. One set would appear after the Key Takeaways section (which appears at the end of each topic) and could be called Key Terms, and the other set would be a Chapter Terms section at the end of the chapter, appearing directly after the Chapter Summary. Further, there would be a glossary at the end of the textbook, with page references. These terms would also be included in the index. In the Exercises and Critical Thinking sections, students are asked to define terminology, but because there is no glossary or answer key to the exercises, there is no place for students to compare their definitions with those of the author.

Content Accuracyrating: 4

Content appears to be mostly accurate and error-free. Reference lists are consistently and accurately formatted according to APA Style (6th ed.), as are in-text citations—kudos! I checked most of them and found very few, minor errors, other than the spacing issue that I will explain later in this review. There were some errors: for example, Hans Selye's surname was incorrectly spelled as "Seyle" five times (on pp. 125, 126, and 128). Also, check the Rosenberg Scale on p. 182; I think it should say "average number on non-reverse items on the scale is 3 out of 4." Also, I am fairly certain that no explanation was attached to the Research Focus sections. From the examples used throughout, I detected a certain amount of bias. The target audience for the textbook itself (not including the Preface) seems to be limited to young, North American, college students. It might be appropriate, given the subject matter, to include a more diverse audience base, such as students from other cultures and in a range of age groups. Also, there is a bias toward a positive thinking approach; there is no mention of cognitive behavioural therapy or other approaches used in psychotherapy. Holmes and Rahe's stress scale is only one approach; others are not mentioned.

Relevance/Longevityrating: 4

Many real-life illustrative sections (used to illustrate a concept, such as the concept of self) are provided throughout the textbook, generally at the beginning of a chapter or section. Both students and instructors can quickly find and tap into these for in-classroom or self-study. These will have to be updated periodically, although some can remain (not be replaced/swapped out). For example, the Dancing Matt Harding reference is already outdated, since Harding has released more videos since 2008. Further, it might be a good idea to use physical separation (in addition to, or perhaps instead of, the use of italic font) between the example material and the textbook commentary, particularly if any third-party material is used. Suggestion: set out some of these illustrative sections as case studies (maybe one case study per chapter) followed later in the topic by exercises and reflective questions that refer back to the case studies.

Clarityrating: 4

The writing is lucid and accessible, although paragraphs tend to be on the long side. They could be broken up as appropriate and more expositive subheadings could be introduced to help chunk the content (something an editor could help with). Italic font is used for several purposes: (1) for the illustrative real-life examples of concepts, (2) sometimes for key terms, and (3) for in-text definitions of these key terms. Definitions are sometimes italicized, but additional non-essential words are included (see p. 126 for an example). The Preface should include an explanation of any such font choice and the first chapter should include a reminder of what the author has decided to do in this regard and then apply the choice consistently. Context for jargon and/or technical terminology is provided, particularly by way of the illustrative examples mentioned earlier and in the self-assessment quizzes (such as the true or false quiz on p. 32).

Consistencyrating: 4

The framework could benefit from minor changes. Font colour, when referring to a table or figure in text, could be matched when referring to the captions. In the interest of visual consistency, I recommend that the same colour be used for both the caption

Modularityrating: 4

The text is currently chunked into numbered topics. This is helpful to instructors who, when designing learning activities that include readings from this textbook, can refer to topic readings by number, and to students, who want to refer back to those topics. The numbering also enables reorganization/realignment of material, especially in a course that may be presented in a non-linear fashion, and it creates a sense of progression through the material. However, as mentioned in the previous section, there are large blocks of unbroken text. More subheadings are needed. Also, providing a mini-table of contents at the start of each chapter could serve as an advance organizer, a heads-up to all readers regarding what to expect in that chapter. One way to organize this in each chapter is to have the mini TOC I have suggested including, then the Learning Objectives and the real-life illustrative example for that chapter.

Organization/Structure/Flowrating: 4

Information throughout is laddered appropriately, in alignment with the author's statement in the Preface about the systematic ordering of the information. The structure of the textbook and the complexity of the ideas presented builds; the commentary is flowing and easy to understand. Even more clarity and organization could be provided by using a "roadmap" at the beginning of the textbook and at the start of each chapter to visually layout the topics and concepts covered. I would prefer to give a 4.5 in this section rather than a perfect 5, because this roadmap/visual index could really enhance the organization of the book and make its framework obvious.

Interfacerating: 4

There are many areas throughout the entire textbook where the space between words has been omitted (I counted around 89 in the first chapter alone); this is the spacing problem I mentioned earlier when talking about the APA citations and the job well done on those. Subheadings need to stand out from body text (see, for example, p. 93). Captions are sometimes inconsistently titled, and these need to be consistent throughout so as to avoid any confusion for readers. Also, it's preferable not to use quotation marks around in-text references to table or figure titles. Number Key Takeaways sections to match the topic number—this would aid readers when searching for materials (especially when reading the textbook online). Number and caption ALL images/diagrams/figures/tables (example: pp. 65, 72 images have no captions). Include the figure number and title with the caption itself instead of separating it; otherwise, the caption could be confused with the body text (the commentary).

Grammatical Errorsrating: 5

There are minor grammatical errors (for example, on p. 50, use "a(n") in diagram.

Cultural Relevancerating: 4

I have also mentioned in my answer to an earlier question my impression about the apparent target audience for this textbook. Again, it feels as if, from the examples used and places mentioned when discussing a concept, that the intended audience members are predominantly North American (and possibly of European extraction), have English as a first language, are familiar with dorms and fraternities, and are young. This could also be because much of the research referred to is of North American origin. Halloween is mentioned (p. 174), as is Christmas (p. 130), but many students will not be familiar, especially not first hand, with those cultural or religious traditions. I may, however, be sensitive to this type of bias because I work at a university with many international students, and I do acknowledge that the subject of social psychology is based on North American and European research. But what do researchers in other parts of the world have to say about social psychology? Also, I assume by the places referred to (such as "Seattle," "dorms"), the spelling (American, as opposed to Canadian or British), and other Americanisms that this textbook is US-centric, which is fine, but could pose a problem if taught in Canadian universities. Both students and instructors would expect a Canadian textbook and attach more credibility to it than to an American one, which is why there are often Canadian editions of course textbooks (at least, that's what we use predominantly in the university where I work). Illustrative examples need to be more globally focused, too.

What are the five dimensions of cohesion?

What is the foundation element of discipline?

Which additional dimension of cohesion is developed as Marines develop confidence in their units ability to accomplish the mission?

What is the importance of Marine Corps values?