The tip-of-the-tongue state-the feeling that something that we cannot recall is close to coming to mind-is a window onto many facets of the human mind. It lies at an intersection where memory mechanisms, language processes, attention, metacognition, conscious awareness, goal-driven behaviours, curiosity, and even decision-making and risk-taking all seem to cross. In this book, Anne Cleary and Bennett Schwartz explain how tip-of-the-tongue states fit into our overall cognitive systems and what they tell us about the nature of cognition and consciousness. The tip-of-the-tongue state can wield enormous power over our attentional focus and what we choose to do next, regardless of what we had been doing before the onset of the feeling. In short, it wields the ability to redirect our mind. Cleary and Schwartz's text will appeal to students and researchers interested in the workings of the mind and brain.

‘Cleary and Schwartz have produced a masterful addition to TOT literature. They present cutting edge research on the TOT experience, and their innovative investigations have moved the field in exciting and unexpected directions. This book clearly summarizes current TOT research and seamlessly integrates it with foundational literature. It is a must read for all who are intrigued by this puzzling phenomenon, and it is sure to stimulate new thinking about this universal experience.’

Alan S. Brown - Emeritus Professor of Psychology, Southern Methodist University