Perception of Time

...and now for another Human Factors Minute! With so many theoretical models for how we perceive time, researchers have started comparing the different models. This emphasizes that we still have much to learn about how we perceive time in the real world and use that perception to interact with our environment. Recent research tells us that time perception involves a large neural network throughout the brain; there is no specific structure that controls it. In general, our understanding is that our perception of time is a combination of a variety of factors such as attention, arousal, emotions, and environmental cues. Time can appear to move faster if we are in a positive state and have a high approach motivation (the desire and drive to do something) or find activities so enjoyable and immersive that time seems to pass by faster than usual (sometimes referred to as a “flow” state) Conversely, focusing our attention on something can also make time seem to move slower. When the possibility of a reward is present, stimuli are perceived as lasting longer than when there is little or no prospective reward. These results seemed to indicate that if a stimulus is associated with a reward, it becomes more salient, grabbing more of our attention and thus distorting how long we perceive it to last. Time can also seem to move slower if we experience awe (likely from feeling more present and “in the moment”) or fear (possibly so that we have more time to prepare to react to fear-inducing stimuli). Our experience of time is also influenced by cues from our bodies. Visual input, body movements, and information we receive from our tissues are connected to time perception, leading to what is called the embodied perspective of time perception in humans, which tells us that our brain’s interpretation of signals throughout our body is a crucial element of how we perceive time. This has been another Human Factors Minute! Be sure to check out our main show at our official website: https://www.humanfactorscast.media Support us on these platforms to get access to the entire Human Factors Minute library: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/humanfactorscast Buy us a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/hfactorspodcast Join us on Discord:https://go.humanfactorscast.media/Discord Follow us: Human Factors Cast Merchandise Store: https://www.humanfactorscast.media/p/Store/ Follow us on Twitch: https://twitch.tv/HumanFactorsCast Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/HumanFactorsCast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/humanfactorscast Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/HFactorsPodcast Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HumanFactorsCast Resources: Music by Kevin McLeod: https://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/Mentioned in this episode:Support us on Patreon for access to the full library of Human Factors Minutehttps://www.patreon.com/humanfactorscast