A model of empty duration perception

An attempt to construct a general theory of duration perception is presented. First, four experiments are reported in which the supplement hypothesis, on the relation between two or three empty durations, was examined: the subjective duration of a subjectively empty time interval is directly proportional to its physical duration plus a constant of approximately 80 ms. This hypothesis could be applied to the ratio judgments of auditorily marked empty durations between 40 and 600 ms given serially. It could also explain the discrepancies between musically notated rhythms and the corresponding physical performed rhythms in very simple rhythm patterns consisting of three tones. Next, three earlier experiments on discriminations of empty durations marked by sound bursts were also reanalyzed. Within the range 40-600 ms, the absolute just noticeable difference of an empty duration was almost directly proportional to the standard duration plus a constant of about 80 ms. If the supplement hypothesis is accepted, this means that the relative just noticeable difference of the subjective duration was constant. Finally, the processing time hypothesis is presented: subjective duration is directly proportional to the physical time required to process the given empty duration. This processing is considered to begin with the detection of the first marker, and to end approximately 80 ms after the detection of the second marker.     

Saccade programming during short duration fixations: an examination of copy typing, letter detection, and reading.

Three experiments examined saccade programming during short duration fixations between 50 ms and 150 ms. In experiment 1, subjects copy typed text, in experiment 2, subjects read and executed a letter detection task, and in experiment 3, subjects read for comprehension only. Fixation duration had no effect on the size of the departing saccade in the copy typing task; however, saccades leaving short duration fixations were larger than saccades leaving all other fixation durations in the letter detection task and smaller than saccades leaving long fixation durations in the standard reading task. Within Morrison's (1984) model, these results imply, first, that consecutive shifts of attention during a fixation can take different directions and, second, that successive shifts of attention during a fixation support different purposes. Within Fischer's (1986, in press) model, the results imply that the engagement/disengagement of attention and saccade programming do not constitute independent events.     

Age-related changes in auditory temporal processing

Two tone bursts separated by a silent interval and imbedded in a background white noise were presented to elderly subjects (M age = 71.3 years) and young subjects (M age = 22.2 years). Subjects were required to judge when the two tone bursts fused perceptually by adjusting the duration of tone-one. The bursts were separated by six discrete interstimulus intervals of 4, 8, 16, 24, 32, or 40 ms. The tone-two burst was held constant at 100 ms. Fusion point was defined as that critical tone-one duration at which the two tones fused (were perceived as one). Elderly subjects reached fusion point at longer critical tone-one durations than young subjects at each interval tested. The function relating tone-one duration and interval conformed to an exponential curve and is discussed with respect to an exponential decay model of the inhibitory interactions of neural systems responding to onsets and offsets of sensory events.     

The effects of sound duration on newborns' head orientation

Two experiments assessed the importance of sound duration for eliciting head orientation responses from newborn infants. In Experiment 1, thirty infants turned with equal frequency toward 20-s continuous rattle sounds and 20-s trains of rattle segments. The duration of the rattle segments--14 and 100 ms (2/s), or 500 ms (1/s)--did not influence the likelihood of turning. Response latencies and durations proved quite similar for all stimuli. In Experiment 2, twenty-four infants heard continuous rattle sounds of four different durations: 1, 5, 10, and 20 s. They turned reliably to all stimulus durations; furthermore, the magnitude and temporal characteristics of head orientation responses did not differ for the four stimulus durations. These results suggest that the newborn's head orientation response may reflect a motor program that is initiated by auditory input and then executed in a similar fashion regardless of further stimulation.     

时距的短时保持: 缩短还是变长

采用Wearden和Ferrara(1993)的经典方法, 分别考察了1s以下(350 ms~650 ms)和1s以上(1000 ms ~ 2000 ms)不同类型(空、实时距)和通道(视、听)时距的短时保持效应。实验1发现, 不同刺激通道条件下, 1s以下时距的短时保持都呈现出主观缩短, 其中视觉条件比听觉条件明显; 实验2表明, 1s以上时距在不同刺激通道条件下都呈现出主观变长, 其中听觉条件比视觉条件明显。分析表明, 主观缩短趋势可能是由主观缩短效应和正的顺序误差效应共同作用所致, 而主观变长趋势是由主观变长效应和负的顺序误差效应造成的。     

A constant error in the perception of brief temporal intervals

Ss were presented two stimuli of equal duration separated in time. The parrs of stimuli were vibrotactile, auditory, or visual. The Ss adjusted the time between the two stimuli to be equal to the duration of the first stimulus. The results show that for stimulus durations ranging from 100 to 1,200 msec, Ss set the tune between the two stimuli too long and by a constant amount. For vibrotactfle stimuli, the constant was 596 msec; for auditory stimuli, 657 msec; and for visual stimuli, 436 msec. Changing the intensity of the vibrotactile stimuli did not change the size of the constant error. When Ss were presented two tones with a burst of white noise between the tones and adjusted the duration of the white noise to be equal to the duration of the first tone, the white noise was not adjusted too long by a constant amount. The results suggest that there is a constant error in the perception of unfilled relative to filled temporal intervals.     

元音范畴知觉中特征分析和整合的时间进程

采用启动范式,在三个实验中通过操纵启动音和目标音的频谱相似度和时间间隔,考察了汉语听者元音范畴知觉中特征分析和整合的时间进程。结果发现随着启动音（从纯音、复合音到目标元音本身）和目标元音频谱相似度的增加,启动效应延续的时间越来越长。实验结果支持语音范畴知觉存在早期的声学特征分析和整合到后期的范畴知觉阶段,并为这些加工阶段的时间进程提供了初步的证据。     

Information-acquisition rate, short-term memory, and cognitive equivalence: reply to Sperling

The effect of stimulus luminance on visual information acquisition depends on the duration for which the stimulus is displayed. In this reply, three duration regions are described, and the accounts of luminance effects provided by Loftus (1985d) and Sperling (1986) are compared for each region. Of particular interest is why different combinations of duration and luminance produce equal performance levels. Two possibilities are considered: first, equal performance may be a logical consequence of equivalent cognitive states and second, equal performance may be a coincidental consequence of different cognitive states. I suggest that equal performance following relatively short durations results from equivalent cognitive states, whereas equal performance following longer durations results from different cognitive states.     

时距估计中的锚定效应

采用两种时距估计方法,检验时距锚定值对时距估计的影响,并探讨了时距信息的心理表征方式。63名在校大学生参加了本次实验。实验1采用口头报告法,表明较大的时距锚定值（5s,5000ms）条件下,被试估对时距的估计值较大,而较小时距锚定值（1s,1000ms）条件下被试估计的时距值较小;语义相同但表述方式不同的锚定值（1s与1000ms,5s与5000ms）条件下的时距估计值没有显著差异。实验2采用产生法,进一步表明时距表述方式对产生时距没有显著影响。以上结果表明,时距估计受时距锚定值的影响,时距信息可能以语义形式进行表征,而不是简单的数字加单位的表层表征形式     

数字加工任务影响时距知觉的数字效应

本研究采用复制时距和数字加工双任务,探讨数字大小影响时距知觉的机制。实验首先呈现不同时距的圆点,然后让被试按键复制圆点呈现的时距,与此同时,对屏幕上出现的数字进行命名(实验1)、奇偶数判断(实验2)、大小判断(实验3)。实验结果发现对数字进行奇偶数判断时,数字大小对时距知觉没有影响;进行数字命名和大小判断任务时,数字大小对时距知觉都产生了影响,并且时距不同,数字大小对时距知觉的影响也不同。该结果表明时距知觉的数字效应与数字加工任务和时距长短有关,呈现出动态变化的过程。     

Hear it playing low and slow: How pitch level differentially influences time perception

Variations in both pitch and time are important in conveying meaning through speech and music, however, research is scant on perceptual interactions between these two domains. Using an ordinal comparison procedure, we explored how different pitch levels of flanker tones influenced the perceived duration of empty interstimulus intervals (ISIs). Participants heard monotonic, isochronous tone sequences (ISIs of 300, 600, or 1200 ms) composed of either one or five standard ISIs flanked by 500 Hz tones, followed by a final interval (FI) flanked by tones of either the same (500 Hz), higher (625 Hz), or lower (400 Hz) pitch. The FI varied in duration around the standard ISI duration. Participants were asked to determine if the FI was longer or shorter in duration than the preceding intervals. We found that an increase in FI flanker tone pitch level led to the underestimation of FI durations while a decrease in FI flanker tone pitch led to the overestimation of FI durations. The magnitude of these pitch-level effects decreased as the duration of the standard interval was increased, suggesting that the effect was driven by differences in mode-switch latencies to start/stop timing. Temporal context (One vs. Five Standard ISIs) did not have a consistent effect on performance. We propose that the interaction between pitch and time may have important consequences in understanding the ways in which meaning and emotion are communicated.     

The effects of valence and arousal on the emotional modulation of time perception: evidence for multiple stages of processing

Previous research has demonstrated that both emotional valence and arousal can influence the subjective experience of time. The current research extends this work by (1) identifying how quickly this emotional modulation of time perception can occur and (2) examining whether valence and arousal have different effects at different stages of perception. These questions were addressed using a temporal bisection task. In each block of this task, participants are trained to distinguish between two different exposure durations. Participants are then shown stimuli presented at a number of durations that fall between the two learned times, and are asked to indicate whether the test stimulus was closer in duration to the shorter or longer learned item. In the current study, participants completed blocks of trials in which the durations were "Short" (100-300 ms) or "Long" (400-1600 ms). Stimuli consisted of neutral photographs as well as four categories of emotional images: high-arousal negative, high-arousal positive, low-arousal negative, and low-arousal positive. In Short blocks, arousing and nonarousing negative images were judged to have been shown for shorter durations than they actually were (i.e., the duration was underestimated); this effect occurred at durations as brief as 133 ms. In Long blocks, the display time for highly arousing negative items was overestimated, whereas durations were underestimated for highly arousing positive items and less arousing negative items. These data suggest that arousal and valence have different effects at different stages of perception, possibly due to the different neural structures involved at each stage of the emotional modulation of time perception.     

Sensory effects on judgments of short time-intervals

Two experiments were conducted to test the effect of nontemporal factors on duration discrimination. In Exp. 1, a forced-choice adaptive procedure with a standard duration of 400 or 800 ms was employed. It was shown that, for both auditory and visual modes, the discrimination is better with empty intervals (a silent period between two brief signals) than with filled intervals (a continuous signal), but only with shorter durations. In a second experiment, where intervals of the same duration range were employed but were presented with a single-stimulus method, discrimination was better with empty than with filled intervals, and this effect applied to both ranges of duration and both sensory modes. In both experiments, discrimination was better in the auditory than in the visual mode. These data are discussed in the context of current models of timing mechanisms. Received: 16 October 1997 / Accepted: 30 April 1998     

The category of 1:1 ratio caused by assimilation of two neighboring empty time intervals

We investigated the perception of temporal patterns of two neighboring empty time intervals, t1 and t2, in this order. In a previous study, we reported that bilateral assimilation took place during t1 and t2, as well as unilateral assimilation. [Miyauchi, R. & Nakajima, Y. (2005). Bilateral assimilation of two neighboring empty time intervals. Music Perception, 22, 411-424]. The points of subjective equality (PSEs) of t1 and t2 approached each other. We speculated that these temporal patterns would yield nearly 1:1 ratios perceptually despite the change in the physical temporal ratio between t1 and t2. However, we were uncertain whether these temporal patterns were really perceived as having 1:1 ratios. In the present study, we conducted three experiments. In Experiment 1, we measured subjective similarities of two temporal patterns and analyzed the results by hierarchical cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling. The temporal patterns, where the physical ratio between t1 and t2 was varied systematically, were divided into three clusters, and one cluster consisted of the temporal patterns within a range of -80 ms 相似文献   

非言语声音影响汉语听者言语声音的知觉

采用启动范式, 以汉语听者为被试, 考察了非言语声音是否影响言语声音的知觉。实验1考察了纯音对辅音范畴连续体知觉的影响, 结果发现纯音影响到辅音范畴连续体的知觉, 表现出频谱对比效应。实验2考察了纯音和复合音对元音知觉的影响, 结果发现与元音共振峰频率一致的纯音或复合音加快了元音的识别, 表现出启动效应。两个实验一致发现非言语声音能够影响言语声音的知觉, 表明言语声音知觉也需要一个前言语的频谱特征分析阶段, 这与言语知觉听觉理论的观点一致。     

The effects of marker-related temporal cues on auditory gap-duration discrimination

In three experiments, we examined the ability of listeners to discriminate the duration of temporal gaps (silent intervals) and the influence of other temporal stimulus properties on their performance. In the first experiment, gap-duration discrimination thresholds were measured either in continuous noise or with noise markers with durations of 3 and 300 ms. Thresholds measured with 300-ms markers differed from those measured in continuous noise or with 3-ms markers. In the second experiment, stimuli consisting of a gap between two discrete markers were generated such that the gap duration, the onset-to-onset duration between markers, and the duration of the first marker were pseudorandomized across trials. Listeners’ responses generally were consistent with the cue that was identified as the target cue from among the three cues in each block of trials, but the data suggested that the onset-to-onset cue was particularly salient in all conditions. Using a modified method-of-adjustment procedure in the third experiment, subjects were instructed to discriminate between the durations of gaps in discrete markers of different durations in two intervals, where the gap duration in one interval was adapted to measure the point of subjective equality. Without feedback, listeners tended to equate the onset-to-onset times of the markers rather than the gap durations. Overall, the results indicated that listeners’ judgments of silent gaps between two discrete markers are strongly influenced by the onset-to-onset time, or rhythm, of the markers.     

Duration perception in crossmodally-defined intervals

How humans perform duration judgments with multisensory stimuli is an ongoing debate. Here, we investigated how sub-second duration judgments are achieved by asking participants to compare the duration of a continuous sound to the duration of an empty interval in which onset and offset were marked by signals of different modalities using all combinations of visual, auditory and tactile stimuli. The pattern of perceived durations across five stimulus durations (ranging from 100 ms to 900 ms) follows the Vierordt Law. Furthermore, intervals with a sound as onset (audio-visual, audio-tactile) are perceived longer than intervals with a sound as offset. No modality ordering effect is found for visualtactile intervals. To infer whether a single modality-independent or multiple modality-dependent time-keeping mechanisms exist we tested whether perceived duration follows a summative or a multiplicative distortion pattern by fitting a model to all modality combinations and durations. The results confirm that perceived duration depends on sensory latency (summative distortion). Instead, we did not find evidence for multiplicative distortions. The results of the model and the behavioural data support the concept of a single time-keeping mechanism that allows for judgments of durations marked by multisensory stimuli.     

疼痛表情对秒下及秒上时距知觉的影响

采用二分法和泛化法范式,在秒下及秒上呈现时距探究疼痛表情对时距知觉的影响。结果发现,使用二分法,疼痛表情在秒上秒下都显著延长了个体的主观时距,但使用泛化法,疼痛表情仅在秒上产生影响。根据时间分段综合模型和范式特点,该实验结果反映疼痛表情对时距知觉的影响在秒上秒下的作用机制可能不同,在秒下主要是通过唤醒影响,在秒上则可能由唤醒和注意共同调节。     

听觉丧失对听障学生时间知觉的影响

本研究采用同时判断任务和时距二分任务,探讨了听觉丧失对听障学生视觉通道的时间知觉的影响及其机制。两个系列实验结果表明,听觉丧失损伤了听障学生视觉通道的时序知觉准确性、敏感性以及时距知觉的敏感性,支持了普遍缺陷假设;但是,听障学生视觉通道的时距知觉的准确性却未受到听觉丧失的显著影响,支持了知觉补偿假设。因此,听觉丧失对听障学生视觉通道的时间知觉的影响可能是基于选择性的机制,这主要取决于不同的时间任务以及知觉属性等因素。     

Determining the Temporal Limits of a Visual Sample for Visual Regulation

The author examined the minimum amount of time needed for vision to increase aiming accuracy and decrease movement duration. Participants selected when they would receive a visual sample during aiming movements by pressing a switch held with the left hand. The sample was one of the following durations: 40 ms, 30 ms, 20 ms, 10 ms, or 0 ms (no vision). Decreased accuracy in the no-vision condition compared to the vision conditions was observed when the duration of the impending sample was unknown (Experiment 1). Samples 40 ms in duration were sufficient to decrease endpoint variability when the duration of the sample was known before the movement (Experiment 2). These results indicate that short visual samples can be used to decrease movement time and increase accuracy and that knowledge of the impending visual context can impact the individual's subsequent behavior.