Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
920570 | Acta Psychologica | 2007 | 15 Pages |
Some authors have suggested separate mechanisms for the processing of temporal intervals above versus below 2–3 s. Given that the evidence is mixed, the present experiment was carried out as a critical test of the separate-mechanism hypothesis. Subjects reproduced five standard durations of 1–5 s presented in the auditory and visual modalities. The Corsi-block test was used to assess effects of working-memory span on different interval lengths. Greater working-memory span was associated with longer reproductions of intervals of 3–5 s. A factor analysis run on mean reproduced intervals revealed one modality-unspecific factor for durations of 1–2 s and two modality-specific factors for longer intervals. These results are interpreted as further indications that two different processes underlie temporal reproductions of shorter and longer intervals.