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Signaler and Receiver Psychology

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Psychological Mechanisms in Animal Communication

Part of the book series: Animal Signals and Communication ((ANISIGCOM,volume 5))

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Abstract

This edited volume on Psychological Mechanisms in Animal Communication highlights research on the sensory, perceptual, and cognitive mechanisms that underlie signaling and receiving. It brings together researchers working on a broad range of conceptual questions in diverse animal systems and using an assortment of empirical tools. Collectively, these researchers seek to understand how signalers signal and receivers receive. This introductory chapter introduces the major questions in studies of signaler and receiver psychology that are explored in greater depth in subsequent chapters. In so doing, this chapter makes the case that a research agenda aimed at elucidating the mechanisms of signaler and receiver psychology complements and enriches several current areas of animal communication research, in particular those focused on signal design and the parallels and precursors of human language in animals. Ultimately, the goal of this volume is to lay a solid foundation for broader and more comparative studies that investigate the psychological mechanisms of animal communication.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the series editors, Vincent Janik and Peter McGregor, for their helpful feedback on this chapter. During the preparation of this chapter and while editing the book, MAB was funded by NIH R01 DC009582 and NSF grant IOS-1452831, and CTM was funded by NIH R01 DC012087, R21 MH104756, and NSF IDBR 1254309.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, St. Paul, MN, USA

    Mark A. Bee

  2. Department of Psychology, Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Cory T. Miller

Authors
  1. Mark A. Bee
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  2. Cory T. Miller
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mark A. Bee .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA

    Mark A. Bee

  2. Department of Psychology, Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, La Jolla, California, USA

    Cory T. Miller

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Bee, M.A., Miller, C.T. (2016). Signaler and Receiver Psychology. In: Bee, M., Miller, C. (eds) Psychological Mechanisms in Animal Communication. Animal Signals and Communication, vol 5. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48690-1_1

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