ERIC Number: EJ1008122
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-May
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0096-3445
EISSN: N/A
When Time Flies: How Abstract and Concrete Mental Construal Affect the Perception of Time
Hansen, Jochim; Trope, Yaacov
Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, v142 n2 p336-347 May 2013
Time is experienced as passing more quickly the more changes happen in a situation. The present research tested the idea that time perception depends on the level of construal of the situation. Building on previous research showing that concrete rather than abstract mental construal causes people to perceive more variations in a given situation, we found in 3 studies that participants in a concrete mind-set experienced time as passing more quickly than participants in an abstract mind-set. In 2 further studies we demonstrated that the level on which actual changes happen in a given situation moderated this effect: Changes in high-level aspects mainly affected time estimation of participants primed with an abstract mind-set, whereas changes in low-level aspects affected time estimation of participants primed with a concrete mind-set. (Contains 3 figures and 3 footnotes.)
Descriptors: Time Management, Time Perspective, Experiments, Attention, Intervals, Feedback (Response), Correlation, Psychology, Educational Psychology, College Students, Higher Education, Foreign Countries, Control Groups, Undergraduate Students
American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org/publications
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New York; Switzerland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A