An Introduction to the Psychology of Hearing

Now available in a sixth edition, An Introduction to the Psychology of Hearing is the leading textbook in the field of auditory perception, also known as psychoacoustics.The textbook's longevity and loyal readership can be attributed to the accessible manner in which it describes the relationships between the characteristics of the sounds that enter the ear and the sensations that they produce. Wherever possible, the author has specified these relationships in terms of the underlying mechanisms. The intention is to impart an understanding of what the auditory system does and how it works: research results are not just described, but are interpreted and evaluated; knowledge is not assumed, but deduced from basic principles.

Topics covered include the physics of sound, the physiology of the auditory system, frequency selectivity and masking, loudness perception, temporal analysis, pitch perception, sound localization, timbre perception, the perceptual organization of complex auditory 'scenes', speech perception, and practical applications such as hearing aids, cochlear implants, and high-fidelity sound reproduction. The book also includes extensive references to recent research so that those interested in a specific area can readily obtain more detailed information.

The new edition of An Introduction to the Psychology of Hearing has been thoroughly updated. New sections have been added covering perceptual methods of estimating basilar-membrane compression, informational masking of non-speech and speech sounds, experiments and theories concerning pitch perception, and the perception of speech in complex auditory environments.