Sound Source Perception in a Two-Dimensional Setting: Comparison of Action and Nonaction-Based Response Tasks

Abstract

Laboratory investigations into auditory spatial perception predominantly involve the manipulation of the sound source along a single dimension. Nonetheless, sound-producing objects in natural settings exist and vary within a multidimensional space. Moreover, laboratory investigations in auditory perception typically involve participants performing a task they do not commonly perform in everyday situations (e.g., magnitude estimation task). This study served two purposes. First, the ability of observers to judge sound source position across two dimensions was determined. Second, a comparison was made between magnitude estimation and action-based metrics. The results revealed that perceptual judgments were notably more accurate when participants walked to the sound source than when target location was verbally reported using a combination of feet, inches, and degrees. The findings of this study lend additional support to Gibson's (1979/1986) notion that perception and action are mutual or coupled terms.