Time perception during a two-week confinement: Influence of age,sex, IQ,and time of day

Thirty men, women, and children were confined to an experimental chamber (simulated fallout shelter) for 304.6 hours with no mechanical means of determining passage of time. Extrinsic cues (e.g., night and day) to time of day were absent or unknown. Indicidual estimates of the time of day were made twice daily to determine the relative influence of age, sex, IQ, time of day and days of confinement upon time perception. Estimate deviations in minutes from true time were evaluated by mixed analyses of variance and trend tests. Results revealed significant time of day, age, and days effects. Sex, and IQ effects were not significant.