Review by Choice Review
As the title indicates, this is a very specialized collection of articles that explore how word spreads about military matters. The 13 articles are case studies that vary in quality and interest, typical in such collections. Two of them deal with 19th-century examples, one with WW II, and the rest with postwar cases, such as the impact of Soviet military doctrine on Arab countries. Practically all of the contributors are political scientists, with their usual fondness for charts and tables. The editors say they want to "trace the causal pathways for diffusion." They suggest that their "diffusion studies" with the "comparative case study approach" can be used to make military innovations in one country succeed in another, but they also state that attempts to copy innovations may have disastrous consequences and must be adapted to local circumstances. In other words, this is not a how-to manual, but a set of cases that will interest those pursuing "diffusion studies." ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Libraries that serve advanced graduate students and faculty in political science. P. D. Jones Bradley University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
