Time in Psychology

As Einstein himself affirmed, time is relative, which makes it dependant on the observer’s perception. So, our question today is, how do divergent minds perceive time?

Psychology is the study of the mind. Through its tools, it is used to analyze our thought patterns and behaviours, for the ultimate purpose of helping us develop a deeper understanding of ourselves and others. But how is it related to time?

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What is Psychology?

Chapter 1

Derealization

Derealization is an alteration in the perception of the external world which occurs during moments of extreme stress, causing sufferers to perceive it as unreal, distant, distorted or falsified. Other symptoms include feeling as if one's environment is lacking in spontaneity, emotional coloring, and depth.

On top of these, derealization often also affects one’s perception of time. An episode of derealization can feel like it had lasted for as long as a few hours, when in reality barely a few minutes had passed, or the other way around.

Many people describe derealization as ”viewing the world through a TV screen”, which explains why it is so hard to snap out of an episode, since your mind is almost completely isolated from the outside world.

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Chapter 2

ADHD

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, which are pervasive, impairing, and otherwise age inappropriate. Some individuals with ADHD also display difficulty regulating emotions, or problems with executive function. Though, among others, ADHD can also affect your perception of time.

A very common characteristic of ADHD is hyperfixation, which can make the events at hand seem to pass much quicker than they actually are.

ADHD can also affect your time perception when multitasking. As a person with ADHD, you may tend to underestimate the time that is necessary for the completion of certain tasks, where thoughts such as ”I could go to the store and come back before the eggs finish boiling” arise.

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Chapter 3

Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurologic disorder that causes the brain to shrink (atrophy) and brain cells to die. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia — a continuous decline in thinking, behavioral and social skills that affects a person's ability to function independently.

As a result, patients with Alzheimer's disease develop an increasingly distorted perception of time as the illness progresses. As short-term memory gets foggier and recent events no longer get stored by the brain, sufferers of the disease often start to regress to earlier periods of their lives and mistake different events from various periods of their life for recent, present events.

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Thank You For Your Time!

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Project Realized By:

Ardelean Lazarescu Maya Rebeca

Oprea Vlad Vela Maria

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