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Praise for Touch Matters / When We Touch

“Michael Banissy likens touch to the great benefits and dangers of fire. Just the right amount is essential for human flourishing, but too much or at the wrong time can be dangerous. His unique perspective on the importance of human touch is critical to consider in this age of touchless medicine and relationships. His book is required reading if you are a human being.”

-Steven Y. Park, MD, author of the bestseller Sleep, Interrupted: A Physician Reveals The #1 Reason Why So Many Of Us Are Sick And Tired

“ From hand-holding to hitting to high-fiving, touch is loaded with emotion. Banissy offers us a mind-expanding tour of what touch means - from universal similarities to individual differences - while revealing why our brains seek contact as much as sound and sight.”

- David Eagleman, neuroscientist, Stanford University, author of Incognito and Livewired.

“An engaging look at why touch is so central to human wellbeing - something increasingly recognized during lockdown. Here is the why, together with a run-down of the cultural and gender differences in touch.”

- The Bookseller

“An interesting and informative book by one of the best psychologists working today. Michael’s book is easy to read and doesn’t get bogged down in academic jargon, which makes the work accessible to everyone.”

- Patrick McKeown, author of The Oxygen Advantage and The Breathing Cure

“Exploring a feeling that we rarely ever think about, Michael Banissy opens up a universe of sensation and examines the many ways touch affects our social connections and well-being.”

-Richard E. Cytowic, MD, MFA, Professor of Neurology, George Washington University

“In Touch Matters, Banissy teaches the reader how and why we would do well to think about the meaning, importance, and diverse nature of touch. Banissy deftly illustrates how alleviating ‘touch hunger’ can improve mental and physical well-being and how technology will help touch enhance our lives in the future.”

-Mark Harper, MD, PhD, author of Chill

“As an award-winning social neuroscience professor, Banissy uses one of the largest studies on touch to help readers enhance their self—esteem, find their “touch personalities” and harness the role it plays in friendships, professional settings, personal settings and more. Just like the effects of exercise on our emotions, our senses and the environments in which we live impact every ounce of our well—being.”

-Reader’s Digest

“Based on fascinating findings from his 113-country-wide research project, social neuroscientist Michael Banissy explores the scientific insights behind how physical touch defines our sense of well-being, from our relationships to our self-esteem. Professor Banissy’s insights dig into the impact of touch on our physical and mental health and, based on these understandings, how to communicate and connect throughout all areas of our personal and professional lives…where, perhaps surprisingly, he says touch still has a place.” 

-The Healthy

“Touch is our original and perhaps most primal sense. Banissy seamlessly integrates information from multiple sources to show just how much touch matters to our well—being and how much we suffer when our needs for touch go unmet. Although the book is solidly data—based, his personable, engaging style of writing makes reading it feel more like having a conversation with a good friend. We have needed a book like this for some time.”

- Kory Floyd, PhD, author of The Loneliness Cure