Reviews
Ecological Psychoacoustics outlines recent advances in dynamic, cognitive and ecological investigations of auditory perception and ties them to findings in more traditional areas of psychoacoustics. The book, edited by John G. Neuhoff, sheds light on some of the evidence that is beginning to emerge from these traditionally divergent fields, providing a scientifically rigorous, real-world perspective on auditory perception, cognition an action. Almost all of the sounds in a natural listening environment are dynamic, complex and heard concurrently with other sounds. However, traditional psychoacoustics historically have examined the perception of static, impoverished stimuli presented in isolation. This book challenges some of the traditional ideas about auditory perception that were established with these stimuli and provides a focused look at the perceptual processes that are more likely to occur in natural settings. -ADVANCES: FOR SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS AND AUDIOLOGISTS Those tempted to ask if another book on psychoacoustics is really necessary will find in this lovely volume a positive reply to that question. Studies of the relationship between sounds (their frequency, intensity, location, and the like) and corresponding perceptual experiences are generally conducted in specially designed laboratories under carefully controlled stimulus conditions. Neuhoff (The College of Wooster) and the others who contribute essays to this carefully edited volume take psychoacoustics into the real world. By examining the research literature on such issues as noise, speech, auditory displays, motion, and multisensory interactions, this book makes an important contribution to understanding human-machine interactions, human cognition, and architectural design. A chapter on attention and timing and another on the development of human ability to identify and locate sounds add to the multidisciplinary perspective. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Collections supporting perceptual psychology, acoustics, audiology, and human engineering at the upper-division undergraduate level and above. -CHOICE This book... is a welcome addition to the literature on sound and hearing from an ecological perspective. It is indisputable that such an approach is a necessary addition to the study of auditory perception. Without a strong understanding of how sound behaves in everyday terms, and how listeners behave in relation to it, a more complete appreciation of this foundational system and its links to other perceptual systems is unreachable. This book will serve for no little time into the future as a valuable source of reference and ideas for an enlarging field of inquiry. ACOUSTICS AUSTRALIA: THE JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY Ecological psychoacoustics pairs two fields of the study of auditory perception (ecological perception and psychoacoustics) that have rarely been paired. In fact, many in each field might argue that the pairing is a contradiction. However, the chapters in Ecological Psychoacoustics suggest many reasons why combining the rigor of psychoacoustics with the relevance of ecological perception could improve significantly the understanding of auditory perception in the world of real sound sources. Real-world sounds are complex, but they also are physically constrained. Psychoacoustics has produced a wealth of knowledge about sensory processing of simple sounds, especially by the auditory periphery. It is becoming clear that understanding the complex auditory scene of real-world sounds will require substantial new information about how the central auditory nervous system processes the complex sounds from real-world sources. Ecological Psychoacoustics provides many examples of how understanding and using information about the constraints of real-world sound sources may aid in discovering how the nervous system parses an auditory scene. Thus, Ecological Psycho, "Ecological Psychoacoustics outlines recent advances in dynamic, cognitive and ecological investigations of auditory perception..." -ADVANCES: FOR SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS AND AUDIOLOGISTS "Highly recommended." -CHOICE "This book will serve for no little time into the future as a valuable source of reference..." ACOUSTICS AUSTRALIA: THE JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY "Neuhoff's groundbreaking book represents the work of innovative researchers..." Albert S. Bregman, Emeritus Professor, McGill University, Montreal, Canada "This book will move auditory theory squarely into the auditory world." Steve Handel, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, U.S.A. "...Ecological Psychoacoustics will help define a new field of perception." William A. Yost, Associate Vice President for Research and Dean of The Graduate School, Loyola University Chicago, U.S.A. "Ecological Psychoacoustics will have a beneficial effect on the field..." Chris Darwin, Experimental Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK "Highly recommended" CHOICE, February 2005. "...a very good source of information not only on ecological psychoacoustics but also on the subject of psychoacoustics in general" -Olga Umnova, APPLIED ACOUSTICS, July 2006