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Foundations of Sensation and Perception

2nd Edition

• By George Mather

• Price: $59.95 $53.96
• Binding: Paperback (also available in Hardback)
• Pages: 464
• Published by: Psychology Press
• Publication Date: 8th December 2008 (Available for Pre-order)
• Illustrations: 199
• ISBN: 978-1-84169-699-7

About the Book

The first edition of this comprehensive introduction to Sensation and Perception has been highly praised for its unique approach, which begins with the minor senses and progresses to vision.

The book begins with an introductory chapter on general physiological, perceptual and theoretical principles which gives the reader the conceptual tools to build a clear understanding of how we perceive the world. The next two chapters then flesh out basic topics such as transduction, receptive fields, and sensory adaptation via coverage of the minor senses (touch, balance, smell, and taste). Later chapters on hearing and vision build on these foundations. This approach allows students to thoroughly grasp the fundamental principles in relation to the relatively simple sensory systems before moving on to the more complex topics. Unlike other perception textbooks, this has a whole chapter on Individual Differences, which considers potential sources of difference such as age, sex, expertise and culture.

This full-colour 2^nd edition has been revised and updated to include:

• Revised and expanded coverage of taste processing and perception, touch perception, pitch perception, and receptive field modeling.
• New sections on word perception, the size after-effect, crowding, scene perception, and optic flow.
• A completely new chapter devoted to multi-sensory processing and synesthesia, with a new tutorial on attentional effects in perception.
• A new tutorial on visual dysfunction in artists.

The book includes a number of helpful textbook features, such as key terms, chapter summaries, and student and instructor supplementary resources. There are also 'Tutorial' sections in each chapter, which provide an opportunity for students to advance their studies by exploring supplementary information on recent or controversial developments. Further, over 700 references to original source material lead the interested reader into the specialist literature.

Foundations of Sensation and Perception provides students with a thorough analysis of our perceptual experience, how it relates to the physical properties of the world and how it is linked to the biological properties of the brain. It will be an invaluable resource for those studying psychology and neuroscience, enabling the reader to achieve a firm grasp of current knowledge concerning the complex processes that underlie our perception of the world.

Student Resources: Perception Student Learning Program

The student website includes our Perception Student Learning Program (Perception SLP) which offers a unique and innovative approach to study. The Perception SLP is available free of charge to departments adopting Foundations of Sensation and Perception by George Mather.

Each chapter from Foundations of Sensation and Perception is condensed into a concise summary version, providing an effective set of revision notes. These notes also expand on and elucidate the book's content, with references to specific pages in the textbook. 'Must know' information is presented in a clear, accessible style, along with sections to stretch more advanced students. The notes also provide an integrative framework for a range of interactive multimedia materials and features, including:

• Animations and simulations of key perceptual phenomena
• Fill-in-the-blank questions
• Multiple-choice questions
• Key-term definitions
• Research studies
• Short-essay questions
• Links to related websites.

Several demo chapters from the Perception Student Learning Program are available to view.

Instructor Resources

We offer web-based, password-protected resources free of charge to instructors who recommend Foundations of Sensation and Perception by George Mather. These resources include:

• A comprehensive chapter-by-chapter slideshow lecture course
• A set of short-answer questions per chapter to stimulate discussion.

Reviews

"This second edition adds tremendous value to an already excellent text. It presents a solid foundation in physiology and psychology of the senses in a very accessible and engaging manner. It is an excellent choice for introductory as well as advanced courses and has the breadth and depth to serve as a basic reference text for all." - Patrick Cavanagh, Universite Paris Descartes and Harvard University

"Mather does an excellent job of bringing the topic of Sensation and Perception to life using many examples from the 'real world' as well as giving a comprehensive overview of both recent and classic experimental findings. The book is highly recommended for students who are new to the topic." - Dr Jamie Ward, University of Sussex

"This is an excellent book with thorough coverage of all five senses grounded in clear descriptions of what is being sensed and why. The book has useful boxes that define key terms and excellent tutorials at the end of each chapter so that students can actively engage with the subject." - Professor Iain D. Gilchrist, University of Bristol

"George Mather did it again! Students of perception will be even happier with this second edition, especially as it now includes state of the art sections on two highly active research areas: multisensory processing and synesthesia. It will also prove to be an excellent source for anyone who is eager to find out about the fundamental role of our senses in perceiving the real and artificial world." - Professor Frans Verstraten, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, The Netherlands

"Mather has included some excellent pedagogical features that put this book in a class by itself. ... Moreover, Mather's conversational and interactive style of writing results in a book that is enjoyable as well as informative ... Would I use it for my S&P course? The answer is a resounding 'yes'." - Stephen F. Davis, in PsyCRITIQUES, July 2006

Table of Contents

Preface. 1. General Principles. Introduction. Classification of the Senses. Methods Used to Study Perception. General Principles of Sensation and Perception. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 2. The Chemical Senses. Introduction. Smell. Taste. Flavor. Evaluation. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 3. The Body Senses. Introduction. The Somatosensory System. The Vestibular System. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 4. The Physics and Biology of Audition. Introduction. Sound as a Physical Stimulus. The Physiology of the Auditory System. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 5. Perception of Sound. Introduction. Loudness Perception. Pitch Perception. Auditory Localization. Speech Perception. Auditory Scene Analysis. Hearing Dysfunction. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 6. The Physics of Vision—Light and the Eye. Introduction. What is Light? Some Important Properties of Light. The Eye. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 7. Visual Physiology. Introduction. The Retina. The Visual Pathway. The Visual Cortex. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 8. Spatial Vision. Introduction. Fundamental Functions. Representation at Multiple Spatial Scales. Uses of Spatial Filters. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 9. Shape and Object Perception. Introduction: The Three-Stage Model. Shape Representation. Object Representation. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 10. Depth Perception. Introduction. The Multiplicity Of Depth Cues. Cue Combination. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 11. Visual Motion Perception. Introduction. Detecting Movement. The Integration of Motion Detector Responses. Multiple Processes in Motion Perception. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 12. Colour Vision. Introduction. Colour Space. Colour Mixture. Dual-Process Theory. Colour Interactions. Colour Deficiency. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 13. Multi-Sensory Processing In Perception. Introduction. Multi-Sensory Processing. Synesthesia. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. 14. Individual Differences in Perception. Introduction. Age. Sex. Culture. Expertise. Idiosyncratic Individual Differences. Chapter Summary. Tutorials. References. Author Index. Subject Index.

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