title: A neural hierarchy for illusions of time: duration adaptation precedes multisensory integration.
abstract: Perceived time is inherently malleable. For example, adaptation to relatively long or short sensory events leads to a repulsive aftereffect such that subsequent events appear to be contracted or expanded (duration adaptation). Perceived visual duration can also be distorted via concurrent presentation of discrepant auditory durations (multisensory integration). The neural loci of both distortions remain unknown. In the current study we use a psychophysical approach to establish their relative positioning within the sensory processing hierarchy. We show that audiovisual integration induces marked distortions of perceived visual duration. We proceed to use these distorted durations as visual adapting stimuli yet find subsequent visual duration aftereffects to be consistent with physical rather than perceived visual duration. Conversely, the concurrent presentation of adapted auditory durations with nonadapted visual durations results in multisensory integration patterns consistent with perceived, rather than physical, auditory duration. These results demonstrate that recent sensory history modifies human duration perception prior to the combination of temporal information across sensory modalities and provides support for adaptation mechanisms mediated by duration selective neurons situated in early areas of the visual and auditory nervous system (Aubie, Sayegh, & Faure, 2012; Duysens, Schaafsma, & Orban, 1996; Leary, Edwards, & Rose, 2008).
authors.affiliation: Bradford School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Heron
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hotchkiss
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Aaen-Stockdale
authors.forename: Neil W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Roach
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Whitaker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007088:Illusions / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology*; D013998:Time Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: cue combination; duration adaptation; interval tuning; multisensory integration; temporal perception