Time processing in neurological and psychiatric conditions

Thomas Hinault; Arnaud D'Argembeau; Dermot M Bowler; Valentina La Corte; Pierre Desaunay; Joelle Provasi; Hervé Platel; Jessica Tran The; Laura Charretier; Anne Giersch; Sylvie Droit-Volet

doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105430

Time processing in neurological and psychiatric conditions

Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2023 Nov:154:105430. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105430. Epub 2023 Oct 21.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, PSL Research University, EPHE, INSERM, U1077, CHU de Caen, GIP Cyceron, Neuropsychologie et Imagerie de la Mémoire Humaine, 14032 Caen, France. Electronic address: thomas.hinault@inserm.fr.
² Psychology and Neuroscience of Cognition Research Unit, University of Liège, F.R.S-FNRS, 4000 Liège, Belgium.
³ Autism Research Group, City, University of London, EC1V 0HB London, United Kingdom.
⁴ Laboratoire Mémoire, Cerveau et Cognition (MC2Lab), UR 7536, Université de Paris cité, 92774 Boulogne-Billancourt, France; Institut Universitaire de France, 75231 Paris, France.
⁵ Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, PSL Research University, EPHE, INSERM, U1077, CHU de Caen, GIP Cyceron, Neuropsychologie et Imagerie de la Mémoire Humaine, 14032 Caen, France; Service de Psychiatrie de l'enfant et de l'adolescent, CHU de Caen, 14000 Caen, France.
⁶ CHArt laboratory (Human and Artificial Cognition), EPHE-PSL, 75014 Paris, France.
⁷ Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, PSL Research University, EPHE, INSERM, U1077, CHU de Caen, GIP Cyceron, Neuropsychologie et Imagerie de la Mémoire Humaine, 14032 Caen, France.
⁸ Cognitive Neuropsychology and Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia Laboratory, National Institute of Health and Medical Research, University of Strasbourg, 67081 Strasbourg, France.
⁹ Université Clermont Auvergne, LAPSCO, CNRS, UMR 6024, 60032 Clermont-Ferrand, France.

PMID: 37871780
DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105430

Abstract

A central question in understanding cognition and pathology-related cognitive changes is how we process time. However, time processing difficulties across several neurological and psychiatric conditions remain seldom investigated. The aim of this review is to develop a unifying taxonomy of time processing, and a neuropsychological perspective on temporal difficulties. Four main temporal judgments are discussed: duration processing, simultaneity and synchrony, passage of time, and mental time travel. We present an integrated theoretical framework of timing difficulties across psychiatric and neurological conditions based on selected patient populations. This framework provides new mechanistic insights on both (a) the processes involved in each temporal judgement, and (b) temporal difficulties across pathologies. By identifying underlying transdiagnostic time-processing mechanisms, this framework opens fruitful avenues for future research.

Keywords: Neurology; Neuropsychology; Psychiatry; Time perception; Timing.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Auditory Perception
Cognition
Humans
Judgment
Mental Disorders* / psychology
Time Perception*