PERCEPTION

This collection brings together the major papers in the field of Perception, covering all five sensory modalities. This is a rich area, both in terms of the history and breadth of the subject. The articles included range from recent influential reviews to introduce an area and historical and classic material to leading-edge recent work which may challenge accepted practice. The aim is to provide a feel for the dynamism of the field – often illustrated by major debates between various positions.

Perception begins with an introduction by the editors. The introductory chapter serves as a navigation guide through the rest of the collection, and summarizes the major debates and advances from what was, initially, a topic within philosophy through to the present neuro-scientific basis of the field.

Volumes I and II focuses on visual perception as vision is the most widely-researched modality, and these volumes include classic readings on the topic, from the perception of form, color, and motion, to the grouping of these elements to facilitate the recognition. Volume III covers hearing and touch; papers on hearing cover basic perception of acoustic signals. Touch is represented by research on low-level perception of physical stimuli through to the feeling of pain. Volume IV looks the chemical senses of taste and smell – two closely-related systems. Furthermore, this volume illustrates how theorists have characterized the integration of perceptual systems, and how they interact in the multi-modal world.

This major work will prove to be a valuable resource for scholars in Psychology and related disciplines who wish to access this body of knowledge.

Political Science, New York University.