Many people have reported that time seems to move in slow motion during a life-threatening event. In order to check whether it is true that time distorted during these events Stetson, Fiesta and Eagleman conducted an experiment. In the experimental group, participants experienced free fall through bungy jumping while performing a perceptual task that would be easier to do if the perception of time had slowed down. The results did not show any difference in performance of the task between the experimental and the control group, suggesting that time does not slow down during frightening events. Interestingly enough, however, the participants doing the bungy jumping experienced their own fall as taking much longer than seeing falls of the same height. The experiment has some problems with ecological validity and other possible confounding variables and has not yet been replicated, but it does suggest that our perception that time goes slower during life threatening events is a false, reconstrutive memory.
Here is the original article of the study: http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0001295
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AuthorThis is my class blog for IB Psychology. Here I will publish reflections on psychology, reviews of psychology books, recommended links, lecture notes, and information on psychology topics that are not covered by the syllabus. You are free to add comments or ask me questions. Archives
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