Modulation of perceived time caused by stimulus clarity in object recognition

This study explored the modulation of perceived time based on subjective visual perception, mainly focusing on object recognition. Unlike physical time, psychological time is subject to various influences, such as attention and stimulus characteristics. We conducted two experiments using images comprising dots to systematically vary stimulus clarity and visual recognizability. Experiment 1 revealed that perceived time was longer when an object was identifiable within the stimulus. Experiment 2 extended this finding by offering three response options related to object recognition and naming. The results showed that named objects further extended the perceived time in participants. These findings suggest that perceived time is influenced by subjective perceptual experiences, such as object recognition and naming, which mediate the effects of objective stimulus attributes on temporal perception. OPEN PRACTICES STATEMENT: The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. The experiments were not preregistered.