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Multisensory Object Perception in the Primate Brain pp 211–230Cite as

Multisensory Texture Perception

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Abstract

This chapter describes commonalities and differences in the perception of surface texture by means of touch, vision, and audition. Texture is multidimensional, incorporating roughness, stickiness, hardness, or density, for example. Within the modality of touch, the duplex model proposes that roughness is mediated by different receptor populations, depending on the textural scale. Roughness can also be judged haptically by wielding a probe and sensing vibration. Studies of visual texture perception suggest that roughness is judged from cues signaling the protrusion and spatial distribution of surface elements. Few systematic differences are found between texture judgments based on vision vs. touch, although vision appears to be biased toward encoding geometric pattern descriptions and touch toward intensive cues. When both modalities are available, the relative weights appear to reflect long-term biases and immediate context. Auditory signals for texture, which result from mechanical interactions between an exploring effector and a surface, can modulate judgments of roughness based on touch. Evidence is lacking, however, for integration of auditory and haptic cues to roughness, particularly early in perceptual processing. Measures of brain activation indicate that distinct loci for vision and touch predominate, but some brain regions are responsive to both modalities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213-3890, USA

    Roberta L. Klatzky

  2. Department of Psychology, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada

    Susan J. Lederman

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  1. Roberta L. Klatzky
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  2. Susan J. Lederman
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Correspondence to Roberta L. Klatzky .

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  1. Inst. Medizinische Psychologie (IMP), Universität Frankfurt, Heinrich-Hoffmann-Str. 10, Frankfurt, 60528, Germany

    Jochen Kaiser

  2. Abt. Neurophysiologie, MPI für Hirnforschung, Deutschordenstr. 46, Frankfurt/Main, 60528, Germany

    Marcus Johannes Naumer

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Klatzky, R.L., Lederman, S.J. (2010). Multisensory Texture Perception. In: Kaiser, J., Naumer, M. (eds) Multisensory Object Perception in the Primate Brain. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-5615-6_12

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