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Teghil A, Boccia M, Di Vita A, Zazzaro G, Sepe Monti M, Trebbastoni A, Talarico G, Campanelli A, Bruno G, Guariglia C, de Lena C, D'Antonio F. Multidimensional assessment of time perception along the continuum of Alzheimer's Disease and evidence of alterations in subjective cognitive decline. Sci Rep 2023; 13:22117. [PMID: 38092802 PMCID: PMC10719320 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-49222-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Timing alterations occur in Alzheimer's disease (AD), even in early stages (mild cognitive impairment, MCI). Moreover, a stage named subjective cognitive decline (SCD), in which individuals perceive a change in cognitive performance not revealed by neuropsychological tests, has been identified as a preclinical phase of AD. However, no study to date has investigated different dimensions of time processing along the continuum from physiological to pathological aging, and whether timing alterations occur in SCD. Here a sample of participants with SCD, MCI, AD and healthy controls (HC) performed tasks assessing prospective duration estimation, production, reproduction, implicit temporal learning in conditions dependent from external cues (externally-cued learning, ECL) or independent from external cues (internally-based learning, IBL), retrospective duration estimation, the subjective experience of time and the temporal collocation of events. AD patients performed worse than HC and SCD in prospective timing, and in collocating events in time. The subjective experience of time did not differ between groups. Concerning temporal learning, AD performed worse in ECL than in IBL, whereas SCD performed worse in IBL than in ECL. SCD, MCI and AD patients all showed errors greater than HC in retrospective duration estimation. Results point to implicit temporal learning in externally-cued conditions and retrospective time estimation as possible early markers of cognitive decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Teghil
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza" University of Rome, Via Dei Marsi, 78, 00185, Rome, Italy.
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy.
| | - Maddalena Boccia
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza" University of Rome, Via Dei Marsi, 78, 00185, Rome, Italy
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
| | - Antonella Di Vita
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Giulia Zazzaro
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Micaela Sepe Monti
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Giuseppe Bruno
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Cecilia Guariglia
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza" University of Rome, Via Dei Marsi, 78, 00185, Rome, Italy
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
| | - Carlo de Lena
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizia D'Antonio
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
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La Malva P, Prete G, Di Crosta A, Ceccato I, Mammarella N, Palumbo R, Di Domenico A. The effect of aging and emotions on time processing. Aging Clin Exp Res 2023; 35:2783-2795. [PMID: 37740891 PMCID: PMC10627919 DOI: 10.1007/s40520-023-02563-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Time perception is an automatic process that can be influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors. AIMS This study aimed to investigate the effect of age and emotions on the ability to keep track of short suprasecond intervals. METHODS Younger adults (N = 108, age range: 18-35) and older adults (N = 51, age range: 65-87) were asked to reproduce, bisect, or double the duration of facial stimuli randomly presented for 1500, 3000, and 4500 ms. The experiment included facial stimuli with positive, negative, or neutral expressions. RESULTS The participants across age correctly reproduced intervals but overestimated and underestimated them when asked to bisect and double the intervals, respectively. Overall, when faces were presented with a positive or negative expression, an overestimation of time intervals emerged compared to faces with neutral expressions. Emotions had a greater effect on older adults, who showed a greater overestimation of positive facial expressions and an underestimation of sad, but not angry, facial expressions. DISCUSSION The results provide evidence that time perception is influenced by age and emotions, with older adults showing a greater effect of emotions on time processing. CONCLUSION The study suggests an interaction among time processing, age, and emotions, highlighting an automatic relationship among these domains, often considered independent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pasquale La Malva
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy
| | - Giulia Prete
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy
| | - Adolfo Di Crosta
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy.
| | - Irene Ceccato
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy
| | - Nicola Mammarella
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy
| | - Rocco Palumbo
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy
| | - Alberto Di Domenico
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 31, Via Dei Vestini, 66100, Chieti, Italy
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Coelho P, Rodrigues JA, Nascimento Alves P, Fonseca AC. Time perception changes in stroke patients: A systematic literature review. Front Neurol 2022; 13:938367. [PMID: 35928126 PMCID: PMC9343772 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2022.938367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Time perception comprises the subjective experience of passing of time and of the duration of an event. Although already described in some neurological and psychiatric conditions, there is a paucity of details regarding this neurocognitive change in stroke patients. We aimed to describe time perception dysfunction in stroke patient. Methods We performed a systematic review of the literature in Pubmed, PsycInfo and EMBASE including manuscripts from their inception until December 2020. We collected data regarding the type of time perception that was detected, type of stroke, most common location of lesions, evaluation tests that were used and time of evaluation after stroke onset. Results A total of 27 manuscripts were selected, concerning a total of 418 patients (n = 253 male; 60.5%). Most manuscripts (n = 21) evaluated patients with ischaemic lesions (n = 407; 97.4%). The majority referred to evaluations between 2 months and seven years after stroke. Underestimation in temporal evaluation in sub- and supra-second was the most common dysfunction (n = 165; 41.7%). Overestimation of time (n = 116; 27.8%) and impaired time interval comparison (n = 88; 22.2%) were also found. Most patients had right hemisphere lesions (n = 219 patients; 52.4%). Common reported lesion locations included the thalamus, insula, basal ganglia, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex including supramarginal, angular gyrus and right inferior parietal cortex and cerebellum. Conclusion There are multiple stroke locations associated with time perception dysfunction, which highlights the complex system involved in time perception. There is still scarce knowledge about specific time perception deficits after stroke. Most studies rely in psychometric analysis without clear clinical and functional translation, namely regarding impact on daily activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro Coelho
- Serviço de Neurologia, Departamento de Neurociências e Saúde Mental, Hospital de Santa Maria, Centro Hospitalar Universitário Lisboa Norte, Lisboa, Portugal
- Centro de Estudos Egas Moniz, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
- *Correspondence: Pedro Coelho
| | - Joana Amado Rodrigues
- Clínica Universitária de Neurologia, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Pedro Nascimento Alves
- Serviço de Neurologia, Departamento de Neurociências e Saúde Mental, Hospital de Santa Maria, Centro Hospitalar Universitário Lisboa Norte, Lisboa, Portugal
- Centro de Estudos Egas Moniz, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
- Laboratório de Estudos de Linguagem, Centro de Estudos Egas Moniz, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Ana Catarina Fonseca
- Serviço de Neurologia, Departamento de Neurociências e Saúde Mental, Hospital de Santa Maria, Centro Hospitalar Universitário Lisboa Norte, Lisboa, Portugal
- Centro de Estudos Egas Moniz, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
- Clínica Universitária de Neurologia, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
- Instituto de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
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Explicit and implicit timing in older adults: Dissociable associations with age and cognitive decline. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0264999. [PMID: 35294473 PMCID: PMC8926191 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0264999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to test two common explanations for the general finding of age-related changes in the performance of timing tasks within the millisecond-to-second range intervals. The first explanation is that older adults have a real difficulty in temporal processing as compared to younger adults. The second explanation is that older adults perform poorly on timing tasks because of their reduced cognitive control functions. These explanations have been mostly contrasted in explicit timing tasks that overtly require participants to process interval durations. Fewer studies have instead focused on implicit timing tasks, where no explicit instructions to process time are provided. Moreover, the investigation of both explicit and implicit timing in older adults has been restricted so far to healthy older participants. Here, a large sample (N = 85) comprising not only healthy but also pathological older adults completed explicit (time bisection) and implicit (foreperiod) timing tasks within a single session. Participants’ age and cognitive decline, measured with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), were used as continuous variables to explain performance on explicit and implicit timing tasks. Results for the explicit timing task showed a flatter psychometric curve with increasing age or decreasing MMSE scores, pointing to a deficit at the level of cognitive control functions rather than of temporal processing. By contrast, for the implicit timing task, a decrease in the MMSE scores was associated with a reduced foreperiod effect, an index of implicit time processing. Overall, these findings extend previous studies on explicit and implicit timing in healthy aged samples by dissociating between age and cognitive decline (in the normal-to-pathological continuum) in older adults.
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Coelho S, de Mendonça A, Maroco J, Cardoso S, Mello Z, Guerreiro M. Time perspective and amnestic mild cognitive impairment. J Neuropsychol 2022; 16:463-480. [PMID: 35174621 DOI: 10.1111/jnp.12274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Revised: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE We examined time perspective in patients with amnesic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). Prior research has shown that aMCI is associated with difficulties in experiencing time duration and succession. However, this line of inquiry has not been extended to time perspective. We examined associations between aMCI and multiple dimensions of time perspective including perceived orientations and relationships among the past, present, and future. METHOD Thirty aMCI patients and thirty-three healthy controls participated. Measures were the Time Orientation Scale (TOS), the Time Relation Scale (TRS), and the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI), as well as a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation. RESULTS The TRS was associated with aMCI. Patients with aMCI were more likely to perceive that time was unrelated than the healthy older adults. Among patients with aMCI, an unrelated time perspective was associated with poorer performance in executive function measures. However, aMCI was not associated with the TOS or the ZTPI. CONCLUSIONS Patients with aMCI have difficulty in perceiving relationships among the past, present, and future. This could be the consequence of deficits in executive functions. This research suggests that patients with aMCI may have limited understanding for how their current behaviours are related to both their past and future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Coelho
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Lisbon, Portugal
| | | | - João Maroco
- William James Center for Research, ISPA-IU, Lisboa, Portugal
| | | | - Zena Mello
- San Francisco State University, California, USA
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Do the young and the old perceive emotional intervals differently when shown on a younger or older face? Cogn Process 2021; 22:691-699. [PMID: 34117596 DOI: 10.1007/s10339-021-01037-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2021] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Many authors have analysed the effects of emotion recognition on time perception, showing that the more arousing the stimuli are the greater is the effect on duration perception. Visual stimuli, in particular faces, are the most recurrent stimuli employed in the literature. However, pictures in which emotional faces of older individuals have rarely been used, and when used, only young participants were tested. Hence, the present study is designed not only to analyse differences as regards duration perception in younger and older participants, but also to investigate the effects of neutral, happy, and angry facial expressions on younger and older participants when younger or older faces express those emotions. Results showed overestimation when emotional stimuli were presented. Interestingly, we observed temporal underestimation when the temporal intervals were marked by the image of younger participants and this was true in particular for older adults participants. Results are discussed in accordance with the internal clock model and in accordance with an inferential/reconstructive process occurring in memory and acting on temporal judgments.
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Mioni G, Román-Caballero R, Clerici J, Capizzi M. Prospective and retrospective timing in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Behav Brain Res 2021; 410:113354. [PMID: 33989726 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2021] [Revised: 04/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/08/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Performance on timing tasks changes with age. Whether these changes reflect a real "clock" problem due to aging or a secondary effect of the reduced cognitive resources of older adults is still an unsettled question. Research on processing of time in aged populations marked by severe mnemonic and/or attentional deficits, such as patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), may help elucidate the role of cognitive resources in age-related temporal distortions. To this end, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of timing studies in AD and MCI patients; both prospective and retrospective timing tasks were considered and analysed separately. As concerns prospective timing, a first random-effect model showed a medium overall effect of neurodegeneration on timing performance. When considering the role of moderator variables(i.e., neurodegenerative condition, type of measure, participants' age and years of education, interval length, and type of timing task), mean score appeared to be a less sensitive measure than accuracy and variability, and the observed temporal impairment was smaller in older samples. In addition, AD patients only exhibited medium-to-high impairment on prospective timing tasks, whereas MCI patients did not significantly differ from controls. However, assuming a mean age of 70 years old and absolute error as dependent variable, a second fitted meta-regression model predicted a significant outcome also for MCI patients. Concerning retrospective timing, a significant but small effect of neurodegeneration was observed for retrospective judgments. None of the moderators, however, explained between-studies variability. Collectively, our findings highlight a clear deficit in prospective timing for AD patients and underscore several issues that future work should carefully consider to better investigate the effect of MCI on prospective temporal judgements. Results from retrospective timing also point to a possible impairment of retrospective judgments in neurodegenerative conditions, albeit more studies are needed to substantiate this finding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanna Mioni
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Italy.
| | - Rafael Román-Caballero
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Spain; Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Spain
| | - Jacopo Clerici
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Italy
| | - Mariagrazia Capizzi
- Université Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, EPSYLON EA 4556, F34000, Montpellier, France
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Melcher D, Kumar D, Srinivasan N. The role of action intentionality and effector in the subjective expansion of temporal duration after saccadic eye movements. Sci Rep 2020; 10:16922. [PMID: 33037289 PMCID: PMC7547063 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-73830-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual perception is based on periods of stable fixation separated by saccadic eye movements. Although naive perception seems stable (in space) and continuous (in time), laboratory studies have demonstrated that events presented around the time of saccades are misperceived spatially and temporally. Saccadic chronostasis, the "stopped clock illusion", represents one such temporal distortion in which the movement of the clock hand after the saccade is perceived as lasting longer than usual. Multiple explanations for chronostasis have been proposed including action-backdating, temporal binding of the action towards the moment of its effect ("intentional binding") and post-saccadic temporal dilation. The current study aimed to resolve this debate by using different types of action (keypress vs saccade) and varying the intentionality of the action. We measured both perceived onset of the motor action and perceived onset of an auditory tone presented at different delays after the keypress/saccade. The results showed intentional binding for the keypress action, with perceived motor onset shifted forwards in time and the time of the tone shifted backwards. Saccades resulted in the opposite pattern, showing temporal expansion rather than compression, especially with cued saccades. The temporal illusion was modulated by intentionality of the movement. Our findings suggest that saccadic chronostasis is not solely dependent on a backward shift in perceived saccade onset, but instead reflects a temporal dilation. This percept of an effectively "longer" period at the beginning of a new fixation may reflect the pattern of suppressed, and then enhanced, visual processing around the time of saccades.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Melcher
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Trento, Italy. .,Division of Science, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
| | - Devpriya Kumar
- Centre of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India.,Interdisciplinary Program in Cognitive Science, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, India.,Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, India
| | - Narayanan Srinivasan
- Centre of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India.,Interdisciplinary Program in Cognitive Science, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, India
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Lee ACH, Thavabalasingam S, Alushaj D, Çavdaroğlu B, Ito R. The hippocampus contributes to temporal duration memory in the context of event sequences: A cross-species perspective. Neuropsychologia 2019; 137:107300. [PMID: 31836410 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.107300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2019] [Revised: 12/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/06/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Although a large body of research has implicated the hippocampus in the processing of memory for temporal duration, there is an exigent degree of inconsistency across studies that obfuscates the precise contributions of this structure. To shed light on this issue, the present review article surveys both historical and recent cross-species evidence emanating from a wide variety of experimental paradigms, identifying areas of convergence and divergence. We suggest that while factors such as time-scale (e.g. the length of durations involved) and the nature of memory processing (e.g. prospective vs. retrospective memory) are very helpful in the interpretation of existing data, an additional important consideration is the context in which the duration information is experienced and processed, with the hippocampus being preferentially involved in memory for durations that are embedded within a sequence of events. We consider the mechanisms that may underpin temporal duration memory and how the same mechanisms may contribute to memory for other aspects of event sequences such as temporal order.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andy C H Lee
- Department of Psychology (Scarborough), University of Toronto, Toronto, M1C 1A4, Canada; Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Centre, Toronto, M6A 2E1, Canada.
| | | | - Denada Alushaj
- Department of Psychology (Scarborough), University of Toronto, Toronto, M1C 1A4, Canada
| | - Bilgehan Çavdaroğlu
- Department of Psychology (Scarborough), University of Toronto, Toronto, M1C 1A4, Canada
| | - Rutsuko Ito
- Department of Psychology (Scarborough), University of Toronto, Toronto, M1C 1A4, Canada; Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, M5S 3G5, Canada
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