Individual alerting efficiency modulates time perception.

Xiting Huang,Cuihua Bi,Wenjing Yang,Peiduo Liu,Antao Chen,Xiangyong Yuan

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00386

Abstract

Time perception plays a fundamental role in human perceptual and motor activities, and can be influenced by various factors, such as selective attention and arousal. However, little is known about the influence of individual alerting efficiency on perceived duration. In this study, we explored this question by running two experiments. The Attentional Networks Test was used to evaluate individual differences in alerting efficiency in each experiment. Temporal bisection (Experiment 1) and time generalization task (Experiment 2) were used to explore the participants’ perception of duration. The results indicated that subjects in the high alerting efficiency group overestimated interval durations and estimated durations more accurately compared with subjects in the low alerting efficiency group. The two experiments showed that the sensitivity of time was not influenced by individual alerting efficiency. Based on previous studies and current findings, we infer that individual differences in alerting efficiency may influence time perception through modulating the latency of the attention-controlled switch and the speed of the peacemaker within the framework of the internal clock model.

Highlights

Perception of brief event durations is fundamental to a range of human perceptual and motor activities that include motor control in walking, speaking, playing music, driving a car, and participating in sports
One-way ANOVA comparing the absolute value of this score revealed a marginally significant effect on the groups [F (1,46) = 3.47, p = 0.07, η2 = 0.08]. These results indicated that the temporal estimation of participants in the high alerting efficiency group might be more accurate than participants in the low alerting efficiency group
The results showed that participants in the high alerting efficiency group tended to overestimate the physical interval and estimate duration more accurately compared to participants in the low alerting efficiency group, whereas no significant differences were observed in the SD between the two groups

Summary

Introduction

Perception of brief event durations is fundamental to a range of human perceptual and motor activities that include motor control in walking, speaking, playing music, driving a car, and participating in sports. In which the experience of time is not isomorphic to physical time, have long been reported in daily life as well as in psychophysical studies (Wittmann et al, 2010; Allman and Meck, 2012). Emotionally aversive events are perceived to last longer than their physical duration (Droit-Volet and Meck, 2007; Wittmann and van Wassenhove, 2009; Gil and Droit-Volet, 2011; Grommet et al, 2011). Studies have documented that stimuli with larger magnitudes, intensity, and complexity expanded perceived duration, whereas stimuli that are repeated, have high probability, and non-salient compressed time (Eagleman, 2008; van Wassenhove et al, 2008; Birngruber et al, 2014).

Results

Discussion

Conclusion