Conscience du temps, sentiment de passage du temps: une approche métacognitive de la perception du temps

Metacognition concerns both individuals' knowledge about their cognitive functioning and the processes that regulate them (Koriat, 2007). The study of the perception of time showed that many factors cause temporal distortions, including, for example, attention or feedback. The purpose of this work is thus to propose an integrative model of metacognition of time perception; i.e. to integrate data based on conventional research on the perception of time in a metacognitive model (Nelson and Narens 1990).
Our first question was to verify the existence of knowledge about the perception of time, especially on the factors responsible for temporal distortions. The three experiments of our first study led us to create and validate the Metacognitive Questionnaire on Time (MQT). The latter consists of 24 items that highlights the existence of knowledge, more reliable for oneself (subscale Self, 12 items)
than for others (subscale Others, 12 items), on two factors known to affect time perception: an Emotion Factor (4 items) and an Attention factor (8 items).
Secondly, we studied the influence of metacognitive processes on temporal judgments. Thus, we are interested in the influence of metacognitive Control process on performances in two temporal tasks. Our hypothesis was that knowledge about time allowed regulating the temporal judgments. The results of our studies (Study 2 and 3, respectively composed of one and two experiments) confirmed the importance of the Control process on temporal judgments. Thus, mere awareness of the role of attention on perception of time causes a reduction of the attentional effect generally observed (Study 2). Moreover, explicit erroneous knowledge given to participants causes a reduction or even disappearance of automatic emotional effect of anger on the temporal judgments (Study 3). Finally, we have explored the link between Monitoring process and temporal judgments. Our fourth study demonstrated the ability of individuals to accurately estimate the accuracy of their temporal judgments under certain conditions. Indeed, it appears that individuals are sensitive to task difficulty and duration range. These two dimensions affect both temporal judgments and confidence level estimates.
Overall, the results of this study emphasize the importance to take account of metacognitive processes in the study of the perception of time.