Attentional processes in time perception: effects of mental workload and event structure.

Full Abstract

The role of attention in timing was evaluated in 2 experiments. In Experiment 1, participants reproduced the durations of melodies with either a coherent or an incoherent structure. Participants were tested under control (timing only) and detection (timing plus target detection) workload conditions. Reproductions were shorter and more inaccurate under detection conditions, and incoherent event structure extended the effect to a wider range of durations. In Experiment 2, participants reproduced the durations of auditory prose passages that represented 3 levels of mental workload and 3 levels of event structure. Both increases in workload and the degradation of structure led to inaccurate reproductions. The results point to the central role of attention in temporal experience.

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Author information

Author/s: Brown, Scott W (SW); Boltz, Marilyn G (MG);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Southern Maine, Portland 04104-9300, USA. swbrown@usm.maine.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Journal of experimental psychology. Human perception and performance (J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2002-Jun; vol 28 (issue 3) : pp 600-15

Dates: Created 2002/06/21; Completed 2003/01/10; Revised 2004/11/17;

PMID: 12075891, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adult
Attention
Concept Formation
Female
Humans
Male
Mental Recall

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