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Time contracts and temporal precision declines when the mind wanders

Terhune, Devin B. LU ; Croucher, Madeleine ; MARKUSSON CLAVERTZ, DAVID LU and Macdonald, James S.P. (2017) In Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance 43(11). p.1864-1871
Abstract

Our perception of time varies considerably from moment to moment, but how this variability relates to endogenous fluctuations in attentional states has been neglected. Here, we tested the hypothesis that perceptual decoupling during spontaneous mind wandering episodes distorts interval timing. In two studies with different visual subsecond interval timing paradigms, participants judged their attentional state on a trial-by-trial basis. Mind wandering states were characterized by underestimation of temporal intervals and a decline in temporal discrimination. Further analyses suggested that temporal contraction during mind wandering, but not the decline in temporal discrimination, could be attributed in part to attentional lapses. By... (More)

Our perception of time varies considerably from moment to moment, but how this variability relates to endogenous fluctuations in attentional states has been neglected. Here, we tested the hypothesis that perceptual decoupling during spontaneous mind wandering episodes distorts interval timing. In two studies with different visual subsecond interval timing paradigms, participants judged their attentional state on a trial-by-trial basis. Mind wandering states were characterized by underestimation of temporal intervals and a decline in temporal discrimination. Further analyses suggested that temporal contraction during mind wandering, but not the decline in temporal discrimination, could be attributed in part to attentional lapses. By contrast, we did not find any robust evidence that metacognition pertaining to interval timing was altered during mind wandering states. These results highlight the role of transient fluctuations in attentional states in intraindividual variability in time perception and have implications for the perceptual consequences, behavioral markers, and costs and benefits, of mind wandering.

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author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Attention, Interval timing, Metacognition, Mind wandering, Predictive coding
in
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance
volume
43
issue
11
pages
8 pages
publisher
American Psychological Association (APA)
external identifiers
  • pmid:29072483
  • wos:000413693900002
  • scopus:85032350382
ISSN
0096-1523
DOI
10.1037/xhp0000461
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
0488e3c1-511f-4e35-865e-e35f6dc212b7
date added to LUP
2017-11-07 13:07:35
date last changed
2024-02-13 10:22:35
@article{0488e3c1-511f-4e35-865e-e35f6dc212b7,
  abstract     = {{<p>Our perception of time varies considerably from moment to moment, but how this variability relates to endogenous fluctuations in attentional states has been neglected. Here, we tested the hypothesis that perceptual decoupling during spontaneous mind wandering episodes distorts interval timing. In two studies with different visual subsecond interval timing paradigms, participants judged their attentional state on a trial-by-trial basis. Mind wandering states were characterized by underestimation of temporal intervals and a decline in temporal discrimination. Further analyses suggested that temporal contraction during mind wandering, but not the decline in temporal discrimination, could be attributed in part to attentional lapses. By contrast, we did not find any robust evidence that metacognition pertaining to interval timing was altered during mind wandering states. These results highlight the role of transient fluctuations in attentional states in intraindividual variability in time perception and have implications for the perceptual consequences, behavioral markers, and costs and benefits, of mind wandering.</p>}},
  author       = {{Terhune, Devin B. and Croucher, Madeleine and MARKUSSON CLAVERTZ, DAVID and Macdonald, James S.P.}},
  issn         = {{0096-1523}},
  keywords     = {{Attention; Interval timing; Metacognition; Mind wandering; Predictive coding}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{11}},
  number       = {{11}},
  pages        = {{1864--1871}},
  publisher    = {{American Psychological Association (APA)}},
  series       = {{Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance}},
  title        = {{Time contracts and temporal precision declines when the mind wanders}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/xhp0000461}},
  doi          = {{10.1037/xhp0000461}},
  volume       = {{43}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}