The Hearing Sciences – Third Edition is primarily aimed at undergraduate students on courses relevant to hearing sciences. Indeed, the content supports much of the scientific content delivered within UK-based audiology degree courses.
The book is ordered in to four main sections: Basic Acoustics and Instrumentation, Introduction to Speech Acoustics, Anatomy and Physiology of the Ear (which includes a number of ‘advanced’ chapters e.g. advanced anatomy and physiology of the vestibular system) and Basic Psychoacoustics. Whilst I feel it would have been preferable to provide an overview of the anatomy and physiology of the ear at the beginning of the book, overall, the chapters, and content within, follow a logical order and are clearly written.
The text is supported throughout with illustrations and images, although the quality of some of these figures is poor. Some chapters include key references although these are limited in number in some sections. This is perhaps a limitation for undergraduate students who will possibly be interested in original sources of evidence. ‘Clinical Correlates’ are included within many sections which highlight how specific information relates and/or is applied to clinical practice. The authors also include a summary and review questions at the end of each chapter, and these will likely prove helpful for students who are using this to support their studies.
Overall, I think this book lends itself well to being a ‘go-to, overview’ text a student may use to further support information provided during their studies. It is a large, heavy and expensive text and is perhaps more suitable as a library resource than an individual purchase.
