ePoster

Neural mechanisms of subjective time compression in voluntary actions: Enhanced agency vs. divided attention

Sayako Ueda
FENS Forum 2024(2024)
Messe Wien Exhibition & Congress Center, Vienna, Austria

Conference

FENS Forum 2024

Messe Wien Exhibition & Congress Center, Vienna, Austria

Resources

Authors & Affiliations

Sayako Ueda

Abstract

A growing body of evidence suggests that voluntary actions can modulate the subjective experience of time associated with their outcomes, thereby optimising interaction with the environment. Our previous research explored this phenomenon using a temporal reproduction task, showing that the subjective time of an action outcome can be compressed under conditions where the sense of agency (SoA) is enhanced or attention is divided. Building on these findings, our current fMRI study investigates the neural mechanisms underlying time compression during SoA-enhanced and divided-attention actions. Participants performed a temporal reproduction task in three conditions: a control condition involving joystick rotation with randomly moving dots as visual feedback, a SoA-enhanced condition in which dots moved synchronously with joystick movements, and a divided-attention condition in which participants reproduced stimulus duration while performing two key presses and observing moving dots simultaneously with joystick rotation. Results showed comparable time compression in the SoA-enhanced and divided-attention conditions. However, different patterns of neural activity emerged: the SoA-enhanced condition elicited increased activation in the right middle temporal gyrus (MTG), possibly indicating temporal processing related to agency, whereas the divided-attention condition engaged the left middle frontal gyrus (MFG), suggesting involvement in attentional allocation mechanisms. In conclusion, our findings shed light on the neural underpinnings of subjective time compression induced by voluntary action, and reveal different mechanisms depending on whether SoA is enhanced or attention is divided.

Unique ID: fens-24/neural-mechanisms-subjective-time-compression-bed2ab2e