• Time perception is an active cognitive process influenced by various factors. This study aimed to examine the impact of expectation on the perceived timing of target events in the presence of distractor events. Two experimental conditions, namely the no-expectation and expectation conditions, were investigated. In the no-expectation condition, participants were asked to report the time of a single stimulus. In contrast, in the expected condition, they were primed to expect a specific stimulus presented in 80% of the trials. The results revealed that the delay between the distractor and target stimuli significantly influenced perceived time errors in both conditions. Participants tended to perceive the target as occurring earlier when the distractor preceded it and later when the distractor followed it. Surprisingly, no significant difference was found between the no-expectation condition and expectation-met trials regarding perceived time. However, an interaction effect was observed, indicating that unmet expectations resulted in higher perceived errors for a specific delay. Analysis of response times showed slightly longer response times in unmet expectation trials than in met expectation trials, suggesting that anticipating upcoming events influenced decision-making processes. These findings suggest that distractor events affect time perception, and while expectation has a subtle influence on human perception of time, the overall impact is not significant. Further research should investigate the non-linear nature of perceived time and explore the effects of different expectation manipulations.

Defense Presentation

m1_defense_v3.pdf

Journal club presentation