For example, little discussion is made of the demographics of the offenders interviewed in the sample, such as their mean age, whether this is representative of armed robbers, and, importantly, what implications offender age may have for issues such as criminal motivation and policing. Likewise, the book offers a very individualist perspective, saying little about the relationships between robbers in terms of co-offending, role distribution and the influence of the presence of others. There are brief mentions of gangs of robbers using their numbers to overpower victims. However, the sizeable incidence of cooffending in armed robbery is well documented (Einstadter, 1969;Gabor et al., 1987;Hochstetler, 2001) so it seems odd that this is not afforded more attention, nor the significance of this embedded in the rest of the discussion.
However, it is acknowledged that this may be a criticism that stems from reading a criminological text from a psychological perspective. The book serves more to introduce and discuss the relevance of legislation, government statistics, policing and government context. Offender decision making is discussed in terms of aspects of the context of the robbery itself rather than the internal psychological processes of those committing the robbery. On these terms, Matthews provides a useful and detailed contribution to a specific area of crime and criminology with much to say that would be of relevance to other areas of crime and policing. Further, while the book is based upon UK data and a discussion of relevant UK research and legal practices, Matthews also makes comparisons with research and practice abroad, particularly in the USA, therefore widening the appeal of this book. The qualitative examples from the interviews add depth, interest and context as well as support for the issues that are discussed. Matthews' easy writing style and entertaining accounts provide an interesting read for both academics and non-academics with an interest in this area.