Psychology as an Evolving, Interdisciplinary Science: Integrating Science in Sensation and Perception from Fourier to Fluid Dynamics

Abstract

This article outlines the theoretical rationale and process for an integrated-science approach to teaching sensation and perception (S&P) to undergraduate psychology students that may also serve as an integrated-science curriculum. The course aimed to introduce the interdisciplinary evolution of this psychological field irrespective of any presumed distinctions between hard and soft science. The class began with perceptual science’s foundations in Fourier decomposition and culminated in more recent developments with the perceptual science’s interest in pattern-formation phenomena from fluid dynamics, and class illustrated this transition with various applications in music, art, and materials science. Post-course responses to the Research on Integrated Science Curriculum survey demonstrated that our students made significantly large gains in course elements, specifically making the most of the students pre-existing experiences. We find that students are ready and willing to engage in the study of S&P by setting aside neuroscience’s sometimes constraining assumptions.