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| International Symposium - Time and Timing: Experimental Analyses |
| Monday, May 26, 2008 |
| 3:00 PM–4:20 PM |
| Metra |
| Area: EAB; Domain: Basic Research |
| Chair: John M. Hyland (University of Ulster, Coleraine Campus) |
| Discussant: Federico Sanabria (Arizona State University) |
| Abstract: Conceptually, the phenomenon of time exists on several human dimensions. Psychologically, the means in which individuals verbalize the sequencing of events has an affect on the accuracy of temporal judgment and subjective temporal estimation. Furthermore, from a biological standpoint, previous research examining the manipulation of sequences, durations and other factors associated with temporal judgment, yields similar effects in the internal clock. The three papers presented in this symposium discuss findings that further our understanding of both dimensions. The first paper briefly summarizes the current literature on responding in accordance with temporal relations and furthermore presents a novel dual-task empirical approach to investigating such performances. The second paper examines the effects of multiple stimulus durations on temporal judgment through the utilization of dual-task conditions. Obtained temporal judgments from both experimental procedures are discussed in relation to internal clock mechanisms of time. The third paper investigates the effects of fear on temporal estimation in observant individuals. Temporal estimations were obtained through a dual conditional approach, and examined in relation to effects on the internal clock and temporal perception. |
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| Time after Time: Analyzing Temporal Relational Responding using a Dual-task Procedure. |
| JOHN M. HYLAND (University of Ulster, Coleraine Campus), Denis P. O'Hora (National University of Ireland, Galway), Julian C. Leslie (University of Ulster) |
| Abstract: Previous research on derived relational responding supports the position that temporal patterns of human behaviour may be established in part through responding in accordance with temporal relations. The current study utilized two types of temporal relational task: a prescriptive task and a descriptive task. Prescriptive tasks required participants to pick stimuli in a particular order (e.g., Circle then Square) based on particular arrangements of similar stimuli and a relational contextual cue (e.g., Circle Before Square). Descriptive tasks required participants to observe a temporal relation between two or more stimuli (e.g., Circle … Square) and then arrange similar stimuli in the presence of a relational cue (e.g., Circle Before Square), making a “relational statement”. Tasks were gradually increased in complexity across training blocks. In general, accuracy decreased as complexity increased and training on one task-type facilitated training on the second task-type. These findings will be discussed in light of current research on derived stimulus relations. |
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| The Effects of Mixing Sample Duration on Time Judgments. |
| PATRICIA A. D'ATENO (The Graduate Center, City University of New York), Bruce L. Brown (Queens College, City University of New York), Nancy S. Hemmes (Queens College, City University of New York), Lanny Fields (Queens College, City University of New York) |
| Abstract: The effect of mixing stimulus durations on time judgments was examined in two experiments. All temporal judgments were obtained under dual-task conditions. In both experiments, stimulus duration and the context in which sample intervals were manipulated in a mixed factorial design. In Experiment 1, two sample durations (12 and 24 s) were presented, while in Experiment 2 the number of sample durations was increased to three durations (6, 12, and 24 s). Sample durations were presented under both single and mixed duration conditions. Under the single duration condition, one sample interval was presented throughout an experimental session. Under the mixed duration condition, all the sample durations were presented in each experimental session. In both experiments, temporal judgments were shorter at the longest sample duration under the mixed duration condition when compared to the single duration condition, and standard deviations were smaller under the mixed duration condition relative to the single duration condition at the longest sample duration. Relative measures of variability, coefficients of variation, did not differ between the two conditions. Moreover, flatter functions relating log temporal judgments to log sample duration were obtained under the mixed duration condition, although differences were significant only in Experiment 2. The flatter functions resulted from both a lower slope and higher intercept value under the mixed duration condition. These findings are discussed with respect to attentional clock models of timing. |
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| The Effects of a Fear Cue on Time Estimation. |
| ERICH K. GROMMET (Queens College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York), Bruce L. Brown (Queens College, City University of New York), Nancy S. Hemmes (Queens College, City University of New York), A. Harvey Baker (Queens College, City University of New York) |
| Abstract: The present proposal investigates the effects of a fear cue on time estimation in human observers. Participants who meet a criterion-level of fearfulness in the presence of a given animal will provide time estimates under two conditions that differ in presence versus absence of the feared animal. Participants will be assigned to one of two groups in a pretest-postest control group design. The control group will experience the following sequence of conditions: no animal, no animal, and animal. The experimental group will experience the following sequence: no animal, animal, and animal. Under all conditions, participants will provide estimates of four stimulus durations (2, 7, 12, and 17 s) signaled by a tone. One goal of the study is to assess the prediction that the fear cue will produce an increase in time estimates relative to the control condition. The experimental design and the use of multiple stimulus durations permit an analysis that relates to the second goal of the study: to distinguish between two alternative accounts of the fear-cue effect. The arousal hypothesis predicts an interaction between group and duration in phase 2, a multiplicative effect; in contrast, the attentional hypothesis predicts additive effects of the fear cue. A multiplicative effect implies that the fear cue influences the speed of the internal clock presumed to govern time perception, while an additive effect implies the involvement of an attentional clock mechanism. Significant effects of the fear cue could permit the use of time estimation as an objective measure of fear. |
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