Assessment of time perception: the effect of aging.
Studies concerning time perception lack a validated assessment tool and a consensual "gold-standard" measure. Moreover, the present evidence suggests modification of timing with aging. This study aimed to develop and validate a neuropsychological tool to measure time perception and to study temporal perception with aging. Eighty-six healthy participants, aged 15-90 years old, were asked to verbally estimate and produce empty intervals signaled by auditory beeps, of 7-, 32-, and 58-s duration. Two tests were used as "gold-standards": estimation of the duration of time necessary to draw a clock ("clock time") and estimation of the duration of neuropsychological evaluation ("global time"). Results showed a correlation between estimation and production (p < .01) and a correlation between estimation or production and "global time" (p < .01). The correlation between either estimation or production and age (p < .01), suggested a faster "internal-clock" in the older participants. However, this finding lost significance when controlled for literacy. The results suggest that these tests are potentially a useful tool to measure subjective perception of time. They also corroborate the hypothesis of a change in subjective time perception with aging. It was not possible to conclude if this effect was a specific result of aging or biased by the interference of literacy.
Coelho
Miguel
M
Laboratório de Estudos da Linguagem, Centro de Estudos Egas Moniz, Faculdade de Medicina de Lisboa, Hospital Santa Maria, Av. Egas Muniz, 1649-028 Lisbon Portugal. migcoehlo2002@yahoo.es
Ferreira
Joaquim José
JJ
Dias
Beatriz
B
Sampaio
Cristina
C
Pavão Martins
Isabel
I
Castro-Caldas
Alexandre
A
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001307:Auditory Perception; D005260:Female; D005793:Generalization, Psychological; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013997:Time Factors; D013998:Time Perception / Q000502:physiology*