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Touch
An essay on the importance of touch to children's growth and development and to the physical and mental well-being of people of all ages.The first sensory input in life comes from the sense of touch while a baby is still in the womb, and touch continues to be the primary means of learning about the world throughout infancy, well into childhood. Touch is critical for children's growth, development, and health, as well as for adults' physical and mental well-being. Yet American society, claims Tiffany Field, is dangerously touch-deprived.
Field, a leading authority on touch and touch therapy, begins this accessible book with an overview of the sociology and anthropology of touching and the basic psychophysical properties of touch. She then reports recent research results on the value of touch therapies, such as massage therapy, for various conditions, including asthma, cancer, autism, and eating disorders. She emphasizes the need for a change in societal attitudes toward touching, particularly among those who work with children.
Field, a leading authority on touch and touch therapy, begins this accessible book with an overview of the sociology and anthropology of touching and the basic psychophysical properties of touch. She then reports recent research results on the value of touch therapies, such as massage therapy, for various conditions, including asthma, cancer, autism, and eating disorders. She emphasizes the need for a change in societal attitudes toward touching, particularly among those who work with children.
228 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 28, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 3, 2019
Tiffany Field shows us the importance of touch throughout our lives -- how it can affect physical and cognitive development in children, and how it can make or break our health. Must-read on a relatively taboo subject in American society.
February 5, 2021
Great book, the science behind the ancient art of the laying on of hands. Tiffany Field compiled research that shows how many ailments experienced in society today could be relieved through moderate pressure massage, by stimulating the right internal biochemistry to promote the happier hormones and immune system, whilst lessening stress and depression..
February 1, 2026
Good information throughout the book. I will say there is a lot of repetition of various studies and take aways from the studies. I feel like the book would be 1/3 shorter if it wasn’t for the repetition.
May 26, 2019
A phenomenal must-read book for everyone about the importance of touch!
April 7, 2017
Don't tickle people, give the a firm back rub. Our skin is our largest organ, but touch is still the least studied sensory system. The information about our social standing and the safety of our environment is largely calculated based on the amount of touch we get.
Convincing your mind, the it live in a society will the lowest existential threat in history, is hindered by the taboo on touch. Our immune system, hormones, and neuron transmitters are therefore out of sunk with reality. The desire to be touched tries to be fulfilled under other guises.
I'm quoting
Touch Therapies by Another Name
Many touch therapies go by another name. As Diane Ackerman notes in A Natural History of the Senses, “Touch is so powerful a healer that we go to professional touchers (doctors, hairdressers, masseuses, dance instructors, cosmeticians, barbers, gynecologists, chiropodists, tailors, back manipulators, prostitutes and manicurists) and frequent employers of touch—discotheques, shoeshine stands and mud baths.”19 It seems that as our culture places more restrictions on touch within human relationships, alternative forms of touch become more popular. It is as if we needed a minimum of touch for our emotional well-being and physical wellness, so we find acceptable ways, and sometimes functional ways (e.g., going to the hairdresser) of being touched.
Convincing your mind, the it live in a society will the lowest existential threat in history, is hindered by the taboo on touch. Our immune system, hormones, and neuron transmitters are therefore out of sunk with reality. The desire to be touched tries to be fulfilled under other guises.
I'm quoting
Touch Therapies by Another Name
Many touch therapies go by another name. As Diane Ackerman notes in A Natural History of the Senses, “Touch is so powerful a healer that we go to professional touchers (doctors, hairdressers, masseuses, dance instructors, cosmeticians, barbers, gynecologists, chiropodists, tailors, back manipulators, prostitutes and manicurists) and frequent employers of touch—discotheques, shoeshine stands and mud baths.”19 It seems that as our culture places more restrictions on touch within human relationships, alternative forms of touch become more popular. It is as if we needed a minimum of touch for our emotional well-being and physical wellness, so we find acceptable ways, and sometimes functional ways (e.g., going to the hairdresser) of being touched.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews