Directional Perception

["John G. Neuhoff" <jneuhoff@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dear List,

Recent work has shown that within some limits, listeners can identify
the shape of a sound source (Kunkler-Peck & Turvey, 2000), discriminate
between sound sources of different height-to-width ratios (Lakatos,
McAdams, & Causse, 1997), and discriminate and scale object length
acoustically (Carello, Anderson, & Kunkler-Peck, 1998).

Are you aware of any studies that show how well listeners can determine
the facing direction of a directional sound source (such as a
loudspeaker on a turntable) that is free to project sound in any
direction in the horizontal plane?  Short of that is there free-field
localization work in which the loudspeaker does not face the listener
directly?

Thanks,

-John Neuhoff

References:

Carello, C., Anderson, K. L., & Kunkler-Peck, A. J. (1998). Perception
of object length by sound. Psychological Science, 9(3), 211-214.

Kunkler-Peck, A. J., & Turvey, M. T. (2000). Hearing shape. Journal of
Experimental Psychology: Human Perception & Performance, 26(1), 279-294.

Lakatos, S., McAdams, S., & Causse, R. (1997). The representation of
auditory source characteristics: Simple geometric form. Perception &
Psychophysics, 59(8), 1180-1190.

_______________________________________
John G. Neuhoff
Department of Psychology
The College of Wooster
Wooster OH 44691

Voice: 330-263-2475
FAX:   520-244-5577

http://pages.wooster.edu/jneuhoff/index.htm

Alternate email: jneuhoff@mediaone.net