Showing papers on "Time perception published in 2011"

Topographic Mapping of a Hierarchy of Temporal Receptive Windows Using a Narrated Story

Abstract: Real-life activities, such as watching a movie or engaging in conversation, unfold over many minutes. In the course of such activities, the brain has to integrate information over multiple time scales. We recently proposed that the brain uses similar strategies for integrating information across space and over time. Drawing a parallel with spatial receptive fields, we defined the temporal receptive window (TRW) of a cortical microcircuit as the length of time before a response during which sensory information may affect that response. Our previous findings in the visual system are consistent with the hypothesis that TRWs become larger when moving from low-level sensory to high-level perceptual and cognitive areas. In this study, we mapped TRWs in auditory and language areas by measuring fMRI activity in subjects listening to a real-life story scrambled at the time scales of words, sentences, and paragraphs. Our results revealed a hierarchical topography of TRWs. In early auditory cortices (A1+), brain responses were driven mainly by the momentary incoming input and were similarly reliable across all scrambling conditions. In areas with an intermediate TRW, coherent information at the sentence time scale or longer was necessary to evoke reliable responses. At the apex of the TRW hierarchy, we found parietal and frontal areas that responded reliably only when intact paragraphs were heard in a meaningful sequence. These results suggest that the time scale of processing is a functional property that may provide a general organizing principle for the human cerebral cortex.

Distinct neural substrates of duration-based and beat-based auditory timing.

Abstract: Research on interval timing strongly implicates the cerebellum and the basal ganglia as part of the timing network of the brain. Here we tested the hypothesis that the brain uses differential timing mechanisms and networks—specifically, that the cerebellum subserves the perception of the absolute duration of time intervals, whereas the basal ganglia mediate perception of time intervals relative to a regular beat. In a functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment, we asked human subjects to judge the difference in duration of two successive time intervals as a function of the preceding context of an irregular sequence of clicks (where the task relies on encoding the absolute duration of time intervals) or a regular sequence of clicks (where the regular beat provides an extra cue for relative timing). We found significant activations in an olivocerebellar network comprising the inferior olive, vermis, and deep cerebellar nuclei including the dentate nucleus during absolute, duration-based timing and a striato-thalamo-cortical network comprising the putamen, caudate nucleus, thalamus, supplementary motor area, premotor cortex, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during relative, beat-based timing. Our results support two distinct timing mechanisms and underlying subsystems: first, a network comprising the inferior olive and the cerebellum that acts as a precision clock to mediate absolute, duration-based timing, and second, a distinct network for relative, beat-based timing incorporating a striato-thalamo-cortical network.

α oscillations related to anticipatory attention follow temporal expectations.

Abstract: Temporal expectations have been shown to enhance visual analysis of task-relevant events, especially when these are coupled with spatial expectations. Oscillatory brain activity, particularly in the alpha band, has been implicated in regulating excitability in visual areas as a function of anticipatory spatial attention. Here we asked whether temporal expectations derived from regular, rhythmic events can modulate ongoing oscillatory alpha-band activity, so that the changes in cortical excitability are focused over the time intervals at which target events are expected. The task we used involved making a perceptual discrimination about a small target stimulus that reappeared from "behind" a peripheral occluding band. Temporal expectations were manipulated by the regular, rhythmic versus irregular, arrhythmic approach of the stimulus toward the occluding band. Alpha-band activity was measured during the occlusion period, in which no stimulus was presented, but target reappearance was anticipated in conditions of high versus low temporal expectation. Time-frequency analysis showed that the amplitude of alpha-desynchronization followed the time course of temporal expectations. Alpha desynchronization increased rhythmically, peaking just before the expected reappearance of target times. Analysis of the event-related potentials evoked by the subsequent target stimuli showed enhancement of processing at both visual and motor stages. Our findings support a role for oscillations in regulating cortical excitability and suggest a plausible mechanism for biasing perception and action by temporal expectations.

Time, Mind, and Behavior

Abstract: 1. Introduction: The Psychology of Time.- I. Origins: The Nature and Development of Time.- 2. The Compleat Time Experiencer.- 3. Brain Time and Mind Time.- 4. The Use of the Biological Clocks in Time Perception.- 5. From Biotemporality to Nootemporality: Toward an Integrative and Comparative View of Time in Behavior.- 6. Timing Behavior in Young Children: A Developmental Approach to Conditioned Spaced Responding.- II. Processes: The Perception and Retention of Time.- 7. Time Psychophysics and Related Models.- 8. The Effects of Time Pressure on Duration Discrimination.- 9. The Detection of Anisochrony in Monaural and Interaural Sequences.- 10. Memory for Temporal Information.- 11. Contextual Coding in Memory: Studies of Remembered Duration.- 12. Is the Processing of Temporal Information Automatic or Controlled?.- III. Patterns: The Structure and Organization of Time.- 13. Structural Organization of Events in Time.- 14. Time, Rhythms and Tension: In Search of the Determinants of Rhythmicity.- 15. Timing in Action.- 16. A Functional View of Prosodic Timing in Speech.- 17. Time, Size and Shape in Handwriting: Exploring Spatio-temporal Relationships at Different Levels.- IV. Notions:The Concept and Meaning of Time.- 18. Semantics of Time.- 19. The Development of Temporal Inferences and Meanings in 5- to 8-Year Old Children.- 20: Temporality and Metaphor.- Author Index.

The auditory cortex mediates the perceptual effects of acoustic temporal expectation

Abstract: When events occur at predictable instants, anticipation improves performance. Knowledge of event timing modulates motor circuits and thereby improves response speed. By contrast, the neuronal mechanisms that underlie changes in sensory perception resulting from expectation are not well understood. We developed a behavioral procedure for rats in which we manipulated expectations about sound timing. Valid expectations improved both the speed and the accuracy of the subjects' performance, indicating not only improved motor preparedness but also enhanced perception. Single-neuron recordings in primary auditory cortex showed enhanced representation of sounds during periods of heightened expectation. Furthermore, we found that activity in auditory cortex was causally linked to the performance of the task and that changes in the neuronal representation of sounds predicted performance on a trial-by-trial basis. Our results indicate that changes in neuronal representation as early as primary sensory cortex mediate the perceptual advantage conferred by temporal expectation.

Moments in time

Abstract: It has been suggested that perception and action can be understood as evolving in temporal epochs or sequential processing units. Successive events are fused into units forming a unitary experience or ‘psychological present’. Studies have identified several temporal integration levels on different time scales which are fundamental for our understanding of behaviour and subjective experience. In recent literature concerning the philosophy and neuroscience of consciousness these separate temporal processing levels are not always precisely distinguished. Therefore, empirical evidence from psychophysics and neuropsychology on these distinct temporal processing levels is presented and discussed within philosophical conceptualizations of time experience. On an elementary level, one can identify a functional moment, a basic temporal building block of perception in the range of milliseconds that defines simultaneity and succession. Below a certain threshold temporal order is not perceived, individual events are processed as co-temporal. On a second level, an experienced moment, which is based on temporal integration of up to a few seconds, has been reported in many qualitatively different experiments in perception and action. It has been suggested that this segmental processing mechanism creates temporal windows that provide a logistical basis for conscious representation and the experience of nowness. On a third level of integration, continuity of experience is enabled by working-memory in the range of multiple seconds allowing the maintenance of cognitive operations and emotional feelings, leading to mental presence, a temporal window of an individual’s experienced presence.

Emotion and time perception: effects of film-induced mood.

Abstract: Previous research into emotion and time perception has been designed to study the time perception of emotional events themselves (e.g., facial expression). Our aim was to investigate the effect of emotions per se on the subsequent time judgment of a neutral, non-affective event. In the present study, the participants were presented with films inducing a specific mood and were subsequently given a temporal bisection task. More precisely, the participants were given two temporal bisection tasks, one before and the other after viewing the emotional film. Three emotional films were tested: one eliciting fear, another sadness, and a neutral control film. In addition, the direct mood experience was assessed using the Brief Mood Introspective Scale that was administered to the participants at the beginning and the end of the session. The results showed that the perception of time did not change after viewing either the neutral control films or the sad films although the participants reported being sadder and less aroused after than before watching the sad film clips. In contrast, the stimulus durations were judged longer after than before viewing the frightening films that were judged to increase the emotion of fear and arousal level. In combination with findings from previous studies, our data suggest that the selective lengthening effect after watching frightening films was mediated by an effect of arousal on the speed of the internal clock system.

Stimulus intensity and the perception of duration.

Abstract: This article explores the widely reported finding that the subjective duration of a stimulus is positively related to its magnitude. In Experiments 1 and 2 we show that, for both auditory and visual stimuli, the effect of stimulus magnitude on the perception of duration depends upon the background: Against a high intensity background, weak stimuli are judged to last longer. In Experiment 3 we show that the effect of intensity becomes more pronounced at longer durations, consistent with the idea that stimulus intensity affects the pacemaker component of an internal clock, and that it is the difference of a stimulus from the background, rather than its absolute magnitude, which influences the rate of the pacemaker. These results urge a modification to the oft-repeated claim that more intense stimuli seem to last longer, and provide an important constraint on any model of human timing.

Psychophysical assessment of timing in individuals with autism.

Abstract: Perception of time, in the seconds to minutes range, is not well characterized in autism. The required interval timing system (ITS) develops at the same stages during infancy as communication, social reciprocity, and other cognitive and behavioral functions. The authors used two versions of a temporal bisection procedure to study the perception of duration in individuals with autism and observed quantifiable differences and characteristic patterns in participants' timing functions. Measures of timing performance correlated with certain autism diagnostic and intelligence scores, and parents described individuals with autism as having a poor sense of time. The authors modeled the data to provide a relative assessment of ITS function in these individuals. The implications of these results for the understanding of autism are discussed.

Neurobehavioral Mechanisms of Temporal Processing Deficits In Parkinson's Disease

Abstract: Background Parkinson's disease (PD) disrupts temporal processing, but the neuronal sources of deficits and their response to dopamine (DA) therapy are not understood. Though the striatum and DA transmission are thought to be essential for timekeeping, potential working memory (WM) and executive problems could also disrupt timing. Methodology/Findings The present study addressed these issues by testing controls and PD volunteers ‘on’ and ‘off’ DA therapy as they underwent fMRI while performing a time-perception task. To distinguish systems associated with abnormalities in temporal and non-temporal processes, we separated brain activity during encoding and decision-making phases of a trial. Whereas both phases involved timekeeping, the encoding and decision phases emphasized WM and executive processes, respectively. The methods enabled exploration of both the amplitude and temporal dynamics of neural activity. First, we found that time-perception deficits were associated with striatal, cortical, and cerebellar dysfunction. Unlike studies of timed movement, our results could not be attributed to traditional roles of the striatum and cerebellum in movement. Second, for the first time we identified temporal and non-temporal sources of impaired time perception. Striatal dysfunction was found during both phases consistent with its role in timekeeping. Activation was also abnormal in a WM network (middle-frontal and parietal cortex, lateral cerebellum) during encoding and a network that modulates executive and memory functions (parahippocampus, posterior cingulate) during decision making. Third, hypoactivation typified neuronal dysfunction in PD, but was sometimes characterized by abnormal temporal dynamics (e.g., lagged, prolonged) that were not due to longer response times. Finally, DA therapy did not alleviate timing deficits. Conclusions/Significance Our findings indicate that impaired timing in PD arises from nigrostriatal and mesocortical dysfunction in systems that mediate temporal and non-temporal control-processes. However, time perception impairments were not improved by DA treatment, likely due to inadequate restoration of neuronal activity and perhaps corticostriatal effective-connectivity.

Auditory target detection is affected by implicit temporal and spatial expectations

Abstract: Mechanisms of implicit spatial and temporal orienting were investigated by using a moving auditory stimulus. Expectations were set up implicitly, using the information inherent in the movement of a sound, directing attention to a specific moment in time with respect to a specific location. There were four conditions of expectation: temporal and spatial expectation; temporal expectation only; spatial expectation only; and no expectation. Event-related brain potentials were recorded while participants performed a go/no-go task, set up by anticipation of the reappearance of a target tone through a white noise band. Results showed that (1) temporal expectations alone speeded reaction time and increased response accuracy; and (2) implicit temporal expectations alone independently enhanced target detection at early processing stages, prior to motor response. This was reflected at stages of perceptual analysis, indexed by P1 and N1 components, as well as in task-related stages indexed by N2; and (3) spatial expectations had an effect at later response-related processing stages but only in combination with temporal expectations, indexed by the P3 component. Thus, the results, in addition to indicating a primary role for temporal orienting in audition, suggest that multiple mechanisms of attention interact in different phases of auditory target detection. Our results are consistent with the view from vision research that spatial and temporal attentional control is based on the activity of partly overlapping, and partly functionally specialized neural networks.

Emotion effects on timing: attention versus pacemaker accounts.

Abstract: Emotions change our perception of time. In the past, this has been attributed primarily to emotions speeding up an “internal clock” thereby increasing subjective time estimates. Here we probed this account using an S1/S2 temporal discrimination paradigm. Participants were presented with a stimulus (S1) followed by a brief delay and then a second stimulus (S2) and indicated whether S2 was shorter or longer in duration than S1. We manipulated participants' emotions by presenting a task-irrelevant picture following S1 and preceding S2. Participants were more likely to judge S2 as shorter than S1 when the intervening picture was emotional as compared to neutral. This effect held independent of S1 and S2 modality (Visual: Exps. 1, 2, & 3; Auditory: Exp. 4) and intervening picture valence (Negative: Exps. 1, 2 & 4; Positive: Exp. 3). Moreover, it was replicated in a temporal reproduction paradigm (Exp. 5) where a timing stimulus was preceded by an emotional or neutral picture and participants were asked to reproduce the duration of the timing stimulus. Taken together, these findings indicate that emotional experiences may decrease temporal estimates and thus raise questions about the suitability of internal clock speed explanations of emotion effects on timing. Moreover, they highlight attentional mechanisms as a viable alternative.

Stimulus Repetition and the Perception of Time: The Effects of Prior Exposure on Temporal Discrimination, Judgment, and Production

Abstract: It has been suggested that repeated stimuli have shorter subjective duration than novel items, perhaps because of a reduction in the neural response to repeated presentations of the same object. Five experiments investigated the effects of repetition on time perception and found further evidence that immediate repetition reduces apparent duration, consistent with the idea that subjective duration is partly based on neural coding efficiency. In addition, the experiments found (a) no effect of repetition on the precision of temporal discrimination, (b) that the effects of repetition disappeared when there was a modest lag between presentations, (c) that, across participants, the size of the repetition effect correlated with temporal discrimination, and (d) that the effects of repetition suggested by a temporal production task were the opposite of those suggested by temporal judgments. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.

Audiotactile interactions in temporal perception

Abstract: In the present review, we focus on how commonalities in the ontogenetic development of the auditory and tactile sensory systems may inform the interplay between these signals in the temporal domain. In particular, we describe the results of behavioral studies that have investigated temporal resolution (in temporal order, synchrony/asynchrony, and simultaneity judgment tasks), as well as temporal numerosity perception, and similarities in the perception of frequency across touch and hearing. The evidence reviewed here highlights features of audiotactile temporal perception that are distinctive from those seen for other pairings of sensory modalities. For instance, audiotactile interactions are characterized in certain tasks (e.g., temporal numerosity judgments) by a more balanced reciprocal influence than are other modality pairings. Moreover, relative spatial position plays a different role in the temporal order and temporal recalibration processes for audiotactile stimulus pairings than for other modality pairings. The effect exerted by both the spatial arrangement of stimuli and attention on temporal order judgments is described. Moreover, a number of audiotactile interactions occurring during sensory-motor synchronization are highlighted. We also look at the audiotactile perception of rhythm and how it may be affected by musical training. The differences emerging from this body of research highlight the need for more extensive investigation into audiotactile temporal interactions. We conclude with a brief overview of some of the key issues deserving of further research in this area.

Implicit, predictive timing draws upon the same scalar representation of time as explicit timing.

Abstract: It is not yet known whether the scalar properties of explicit timing are also displayed by more implicit, predictive forms of timing. We investigated whether performance in both explicit and predictive timing tasks conformed to the two psychophysical properties of scalar timing: the Psychophysical law and Weber's law. Our explicit temporal generalization task required overt estimation of the duration of an empty interval bounded by visual markers, whereas our temporal expectancy task presented visual stimuli at temporally predictable intervals, which facilitated motor preparation thus speeding target detection. The Psychophysical Law and Weber's Law were modeled, respectively, by (1) the functional dependence between mean subjective time and real time (2) the linearity of the relationship between timing variability and duration. Results showed that performance for predictive, as well as explicit, timing conformed to both psychophysical properties of interval timing. Both tasks showed the same linear relationship between subjective and real time, demonstrating that the same representational mechanism is engaged whether it is transferred into an overt estimate of duration or used to optimise sensorimotor behavior. Moreover, variability increased with increasing duration during both tasks, consistent with a scalar representation of time in both predictive and explicit timing. However, timing variability was greater during predictive timing, at least for durations greater than 200 msec, and ascribable to temporal, rather than non-temporal, mechanisms engaged by the task. These results suggest that although the same internal representation of time was used in both tasks, its external manifestation varied as a function of temporal task goals.

Multiple mechanisms for temporal processing.

Abstract: Many models suggest that time perception is mediated by a unitary mechanism. For example, scalar expectancy theory (SET), the dominant model of timing for the past 30 years, suggests that temporal processing is mediated by a centralized clock-counter module in which elapsed time is measured by the summation of pacemaker pulses (Gibbon et al., 1984). A number of alternative, neurally plausible models have been proposed with clock processes that incorporate either the pacemaker-counter elements of SET, or other neural dynamics such as decay processes or state-dependent network activity (Staddon and Higa, 1999; Karmarkar and Buonomano, 2007; Simen et al., 2011a,b). While these models differ in the mechanisms utilized for the temporal control of behavior, they all suggest that timing is accomplished by a single, amodal process. Support for the hypothesis that timing is mediated by a single mechanism comes from several sources. A number of studies demonstrate that performance is independent of whether the task utilizes motor or “perceptual” temporal representations (Ivry and Hazeltine, 1995; Meegan et al., 2000). Additionally, although an effect of interval duration has been postulated for over a hundred years, such an effect has not been consistently identified; Lewis and Miall (2009), for example, failed to identify a fundamental change in timing performance or “break-point” using stimuli ranging from 68 ms to 16.7 min. We suggest the alternative hypothesis that timing functions are mediated by multiple, overlapping neural systems, which may be flexibly engaged depending on the task requirements. These systems may function independently of one another and may be adaptively engaged pro re nata, such that single or multiple systems may be active during any one timing task, depending on environmental conditions and behavioral requirements. One line of support for this hypothesis comes from a quantitative meta-analysis of 41 neuroimaging studies of time perception in which we found that different neural structures were engaged depending on stimulus duration and the “motor” or “perceptual” nature of the task (Wiener et al., 2010a). Of particular interest in this context, however, is the fact that the meta-analysis also demonstrated two areas engaged across all tasks: supplementary motor area (SMA) and right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG). In subsequent analyses of this dataset, however, we found that even in regions active across several conditions there is evidence of multiple timing mechanisms at work. Consider the SMA for example. Recent observations suggest that the SMA is a heterogeneous structure that may be functionally divided into the SMA “proper” and pre-SMA (Nachev et al., 2008). A rostro-caudal gradient in the SMA has been proposed according to which SMA and pre-SMA subserve motor and cognitive processes, respectively. Consistent with this finding, we found evidence for a functional gradient in the SMA, wherein perceptual timing tasks are more likely to activate voxels within the pre-SMA while motor timing tasks are associated with SMA proper activation-likelihood (Figure ​(Figure11A). Figure 1 A subset of the results from our previous meta-analysis of neuroimaging timing studies. (A) Sagittal section of a rendered brain including SMA voxels from perceptual or motor timing tasks (regardless of duration length) and their overlap. Crosshairs are ... Fractionation of temporal processing may also be evident in the basal ganglia, a brain region often implicated in studies of time perception and with high connectivity to the SMA. Figure ​Figure1B1B depicts voxels from SMA and basal ganglia regions with significant activation-likelihood. Once again, different patterns of activation-likelihood were noted as a function of the duration of the stimulus and nature of the task. For example, there was a greater propensity for the basal ganglia to be activated during sub-second timing tasks. However, it is crucial to note that the basal ganglia interact with numerous other regions, and so these activation patterns must be considered in the larger context of interactive networks. Additional work beyond neuroimaging also argues for multiple timing systems. For example, we recently adopted a behavioral genetics paradigm to look at single-nucleotide polymorphisms in genes associated with different aspects of the dopamine system (Wiener et al., 2011). We found that a polymorphism affecting the expression of striatal D2 receptors was associated with poorer performance on a perceptual timing task, but only when the intervals tested were below 1 s. In contrast, subjects with a polymorphism affecting the expression of the enzyme catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), which is known to regulate prefrontal dopamine tone, were impaired during supra-second, but not sub-second timing. This work suggests that different dopaminergic systems may underlie distinct timing procedures. Another line of data supporting the claim that multiple mechanisms mediate timing comes from the fact that at least under some circumstances timing mechanisms appear to be both modality-specific and mediated by local neural structures. For example, adaptation to focal regions of the visual field produces duration distortions that are localized to that spatial region (Burr et al., 2007). Interestingly, modality-specific regions appear to be invoked for temporal expectations even in the absence of the stimuli themselves (Bueti and Macaluso, 2010), suggesting that the process may be mediated by simulation. The fact that subject strategies influence the neural circuits recruited for timing is also consistent with the hypothesis that multiple distinct procedures underlie timing. For example, a recent study demonstrated that subjects recruited different neural networks depending on whether they implicitly used a beat-based or duration-based strategy (Grahn and McAuley, 2009). Similarly, recordings from rodent striatum demonstrate that patterns of temporally varying neural activity may reflect an integration of the passage of time with its associated action (Portugal et al., 2011), further suggesting that the computations contributing to temporal control may critically depend on both environmental and behavioral context. The hypothesis that timing may be mediated by multiple distinct procedures also accounts for the puzzling lack of neurologic disorders characterized by a profound and selective impairment in temporal processing. Although syndromes characterized by selective deficits in vision, audition, language, attention, and multiple other faculties have been identified, we are unaware of a similar disorder involving temporal processing. Additionally, studies of patients and animals with brain lesions often demonstrate relatively mild deficits in temporal processing. The above discussion is not intended to be exhaustive. Differences in performance on tasks assessing timing for synchronized or syncopated beat timing (Jantzen et al., 2004), as well as explicit or implicit timing to temporal intervals (Coull and Nobre, 2008; Wiener et al., 2010b) have also been identified. A challenge for future research will be to identify these different timing networks and to clarify the functional relationship between them.

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

Abstract: 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.

Are impairments of time perception in schizophrenia a neglected phenomenon

Abstract: Based on clinical, phenomenological and neurobiological observations, psychiatrists often report a deficit in time estimation in patients with schizophrenia. Cognitive models of time estimation in healthy subjects have been proposed and developed for approximately 30 years. The current theory in the field of time perception, which is supported by a connectionist model, postulates that temporal judgement is based upon a pacemaker–counter device that depends mostly upon memory and attentional resources. The pacemaker emits pulses that are accumulated in a counter, and the number of pulses determines the perceived length of an interval. Patients with schizophrenia are known to display attentional and memory dysfunctions. Moreover, dopamine regulation mechanisms are involved in both the temporal perception processes and schizophrenia. Thus, it is still unclear if temporal impairments in schizophrenia are related to a specific disturbance in central temporal processes or are due to certain cognitive problems, such as attentional and memory dysfunctions, or biological abnormalities. The authors present a critical literature review on time perception in schizophrenia that covers topics from psychopathology to neuroscience. Temporal perception appears to play a key role in schizophrenia and to be partially neglected in the current literature. Future research is required to better ascertain the underlying mechanisms of time perception impairments in schizophrenia.