Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Time Perception: Modality and Duration Effects in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

  • Published:
Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Time perception performance was systematically investigated in adolescents with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Specifically, the effects of manipulating modality (auditory and visual) and length of duration (200 and 1000 ms) were examined. Forty-six adolescents with ADHD and 44 controls were administered four duration discrimination tasks and two control tasks, and a set of standardized measures. Participants with ADHD had higher thresholds than controls on all of the duration discrimination tasks, with the largest effect size obtained on the visual 1000 ms duration discrimination task. No group differences were observed on the control tasks. Visual–spatial memory was found to be a significant predictor of visual and auditory duration discrimination at longer intervals (1000 ms) in the ADHD sample, whereas auditory verbal working memory predicted auditory discrimination at longer intervals (1000 ms) in the control sample. These group differences suggest impairments in basic timing mechanisms in ADHD.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • American Psychiatric Association (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.) Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ashcraft, M. H. (2002). Cognition (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

  • Barkley, R. A. (1998). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: 2nd Edn. New York: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barkley, R. A. (1997a). Behavioral inhibition, sustained attention, and executive functions: Constructing a unifying theory of ADHD. Psychological Bulletin, 121, 65–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barkley, R. A. (1997b). ADHD and the nature of self-control. New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barkley, R. A., Edwards, G., Laneri, M., Fletcher, K., & Metevia, L. (2001a). Executive functioning, temporal discounting, and sense of time in adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 29, 541–556.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barkley, R. A., Koplowitz, S., Anderson, T., & McMurray, M. B. (1997). Sense of time in children with ADHD: Effects of duration, distraction, and stimulant medication. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 3, 359–369.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barkley, R. A., Murphy, K. R., & Bush, T. (2001b). Time perception and reproduction in young adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Neuropsychology, 15, 351–360.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barnett, R., Maruff, P., Vance, A., Luk, E. S. L., Costin, J., Wood, C., & Pantelis, C. (2001). Abnormal executive function in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: The effect of stimulant medication and age on spatial working memory. Psychological Medicine, 31, 1107–1115.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Berquin, P. C., Giedd, J. N., Jacobsen, L. K., Hamburger, S. D., Krain, A. L., Rapoport, J. L., Castellanos, F. X. (1998). Cerebellum in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A morphometric study. Neurology, 50, 1087–1093.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Briscoe, J., Bishop, D. V. M., & Norbury, C. F. (2001). Phonological processing, language, and literacy: A comparison of children with mild-to-moderate sensorineural hearing loss and those with specific language impairment. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 42, 329–340.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carte, E. T., Nigg, J. T., & Hinshaw, S. P. (1996). Neuropsychological functioning, motor speed, and language processing in boys with and without ADHD. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 24, 481–498.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Casini, L., & Ivry, R. B. (1999). Effects of divided attention on temporal processing in patients with lesions of the cerebellum or frontal lobe. Neuropsychology, 3, 10–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castellanos, F. X., Giedd, J. N., Berquin, P. C., Walter, J. M., Sharp, W., Tran, T., Vaituzis, A. C., Blumenthal, J. D., Nelson, J., Bastain, T. M., Zijdenbos, A., Evans, A. C., & Rapoport, J. L. (2001). Quantitative brain magnetic resonance imaging in girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry, 58, 289–295.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Castellanos, F. X., & Tannock, R. (2002). Neuroscience of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: The search for endophenotypes. Nature Reviews: Neuroscience, 3, 1–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, Y., Repp, B. H., & Patel, A. D. (2002). Spectral decomposition of variability in synchronization and continuation tapping: Comparisons between auditory and visual pacing and feedback conditions. Human Movement Science, 21, 515–532.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chhabildas, N., Pennington, B. F., & Willcutt, E. G. (2001). A comparison of the neuropsychological profiles of the DSM-IV subtypes of ADHD. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 29, 529–540.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112, 155–159.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conners, C. K. (1997). Conners' rating scales-revised: Technical manual. New York: Multi-Health Systems Inc.

  • Denckla, M. B., & Rudel, R. G. (1978). Anomalies in motor development in hyperactive boys. Annals of Neurology, 3, 231–233.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Diamond, A. (2000). Close interrelation of motor development and cognitive development and of the cerebellum and prefrontal cortex. Child Development, 71, 44–56.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Durston, S., Tottenham, N. T., Thomas, K. M., Davidson, M. C., Eigsti, I. M., Yang, Y., Ulug, A. M., & Casey, B. J. (2003). Differential patterns of striatal activation in young children with and without ADHD. Biological Psychiatry, 53, 871–878.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fortin, C., & Couture, E. (2002). Short-term memory and time estimation: Beyond the 2-second “critical” value. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, 56, 120–127.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Heim, S., Freeman, R. B., Eulitz, C., & Elbert, T. (2001). Auditory temporal processing deficit in dyslexia is associated with enhanced sensitivity in the visual modality. Neuroreport, 12, 507–510.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hetherington, R., Dennis, M., & Spiegler, B. (2000). Perception and estimation of time in long-term survivors of childhood posterior fossa tumors. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 6, 682–692.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ivry, R. B. (1996). The representation of temporal information in perception and motor control. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 6, 851–857.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ivry, R. B., & Fiez, J. A. (2000). Cerebellar contributions to cognition and imagery. In M. S. Gazzaniga (Ed.), The new cognitive neurosciences (2nd ed.). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, pp. 999–1011.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ivry, R. B., & Keele, S. W. (1989). Timing functions of the cerebellum. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 1, 136–152.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ivry, R. B., & Spencer, R. M. C. (2004). The neural representation of time. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 14, 225–232.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan, E., Fein, D., Kramer, J., Delis, D., & Morris, R. (1999). WISC-III-PI Manual. The Psychological Corporation: USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, J., Birmaher, B., Brent, D., Rao, U., & Ryan, N. (1997) Schedule for affective disorders and schizophrenia for school-age children—Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL): Initial reliability and validity data. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 36, 980–988.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kelly, R. M., & Strick, P. L. (2003). Cerebellar loops with motor cortex and prefrontal cortex of a nonhuman primate. The Journal of Neuroscience, 23, 8432–8444.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kempton, S., Vance, A., Maruff, P., Luk, E., Costin, J., & Pantelis, C. (1999). Executive function and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: Stimulant medication and better executive function performance in children. Psychological Medicine, 29, 527–538.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kerns, K. A., McInerney, R. J., & Wilde, N. J. (2001). Time reproduction, working memory, and behavioral inhibition in children with ADHD. Child Neuropsychology, 7, 21–31.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kuntsi, J., Eley, T. C., Taylor, A., Hughes, C., Asherson, P., Caspi, A., & Moffitt, T. E. (2004). Co-occurrence of ADHD and low IQ has genetic origins. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B, 124B, 41–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lalonde, R., & Hannequin, D. (1999). The neurobiological basis of time estimation and temporal order. Reviews in the Neurosciences, 10, 151–173.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lovett, M. W., & Barron, R. W. (2003). Neuropsychological perspectives on reading development and developmental reading disorders. In S. J. Segalowitz & I. Rapin (Eds.), Handbook of neuropsychology (2nd ed.). Amsterdam: Elsevier Science.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mangels, J. A., & Ivry, R. B. (2001). Time perception. In B. Rapp (Ed.), The handbook of cognitive neuropsychology: What deficits reveal about the human mind. PA, USA: Psychology Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mangels, J. A., Ivry, R. B., & Shimizu, N. (1998). Dissociable contributions of the prefrontal and neocerebellar cortex to time perception. Cognitive Brain Research, 7, 15–39.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Martinussen, R., Hayden, J., Hogg-Johnson, S., & Tannock, R. (2005). A meta-analysis of working memory impairments in children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 44(4), 377–384.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nicolson, R. I., Daum, I., Schugens, M. M., Fawcett, A. J., & Schulz, A. (2002). Eyeblink conditioning indicates cerebellar abnormality in dyslexia. Experimental Brain Research, 143, 42–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nicolson, R. I., Fawcett, A. J., & Dean, P. (2001). Developmental dyslexia: The cerebellar deficit hypothesis. Trends in Neurosciences, 24, 508–511.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nicolson, R. I., Fawcett, A. J., & Dean, P. (1995). Time estimation deficits in developmental dyslexia: Evidence for cerebellar involvement. Proceedings of the Royal Society, 259, 43–47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nigg, J. T. (2001). Is ADHD a disinhibitory disorder? Psychological Bulletin, 127, 571–598.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nigg, J. T., Blaskey, L. G., Huang-Pollock, C. L., & Rappley, M .D. (2002). Neurospychological executive functions and DSM-IV ADHD subtypes. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 41, 59–66.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Penhune, V. B., Zatorre, R. J., & Evans, A. C. (1998). Cerebellar contributions to motor timing: A PET study of auditory and visual rhythm reproduction. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 10, 752–765.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pennington, B. F., Cardosa-Martins, C., Green, P. A., & Lefly, D. L. (2001). Comparing the phonological and double deficit hypotheses for developmental dyslexia. Reading and Writing, 14(7–8).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pennington, B. F., & Ozonoff, S. (1996). Executive functions and developmental psychopathology. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 37, 51–87.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rammsayer, T. H., Hennig, J., Haag, A., & Lange, N. (2001). Effects of noradrenergic activity on temporal information processing in humans. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 54B, 247–258.

    Google Scholar 

  • Riordan, H. J., Flashman, L. A., Saykin, A. J., Frutiger, S. A., Carroll, K. E., & Huey, L. (1999). Neuropsychological correlates of methylphenidate treatment in adult ADHD with and without depression. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 14, 217–233.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rubia, K., Noorloos, J., Smith, A., Gunning, B., & Sergeant, J. (2003). Motor timing deficits in community and clinical boys with hyperactive behavior: The effect of methylphenidate on motor timing. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 31, 301–313.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rubia, K., Overmeyer, S., Taylor, E., Brammar, M., Williams, S. C. R., Simmons, A., & Bullmore, E. T. (1999a). Hypofrontality in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder during higher-order motor control: A study with functional MRI. American Journal of Psychiatry, 156(6): 891–896.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubia, K., Taylor, A., Taylor, E., & Sergeant, J. A. (1999b). Synchronization, anticipation and consistency of motor timing in dimensionally defined children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 89, 1237–1258.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubia, K., Taylor, E., Smith, A. B., Oksannen, H., Overmeyer, S., & Newman, S. (2001) Neuropsychological analyses of impulsiveness in childhood hyperactivity. British Journal of Psychiatry, 179, 138–143.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rucklidge, J. J., & Tannock, R. (2001). Psychiatric, psychosocial, and cognitive functioning of female adolescents with ADHD. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 40, 530–40.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schachar, R., Mota, V. L., Logan, G. D., Tannock, R., & Klim, P. (2000). Confirmation of an inhibitory control deficit in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 28, 227–235.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schubotz, R. I., Friederici, A. D., & von Cramon, D. Y. (2000). Time perception and motor timing: A common cortical and subcortical basis revealed by fMRI. Neuroimage, 11, 1–12.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schweitzer, J. B., Lee, D. O., Hanford, R. B., Tagamets, M. A., Hoffman, J. M., Grafton, S. T., & Kilts, C. D. (2003). A positron emission tomography study of methylphenidate in adults with ADHD: Alterations in resting blood flow and predicting treatment response. Neuropsychopharmacology, 28, 967–973.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sebel, A. J., & Wilsoncroft, W. E. (1983). Auditory and visual differences in time perception. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 57, 295–300.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Semel, E., Wiig, E. H., & Secord, W. A. (1995). Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals—Third Edition: Examiner's Manual. San Antonio, Texas: The Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sergeant, J. A., Geurts, H., & Oosterlaan, J. (2002). How specific is a deficit of executive functioning for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder? Behavioural Brain Research, 130, 3–28.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, A., Taylor, E., Lidzba, K., & Rubia, K. (2003). A right hemispheric frontocerebellar network for time discrimination of several hundreds of milliseconds. Neuroimage, 20, 344–350.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, A., Taylor, E., Warner Rogers, J., Newman, S., & Rubia, K. (2002). Evidence for a pure time perception deficit in children with ADHD. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 43, 529–542.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sonuga-Barke, E. J. S. (2002). Psychological heterogeneity in AD/HD—a dual pathway model of behaviour and cognition. Behavioural Brain Research, 130, 29–36.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sonuga-Barke, E. J. S., Saxton, T., & Hall, M. (1998). The role of interval underestimation in hyperactive children's failure to suppress responses over time. Behavioural Brain Research, 94, 45–50.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tabachnick, B. G., Fidell, L. S. (1989). Using multivariate statistics (2nd ed.). New York: Harper Collins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tannock, R. (2003). Neuropsychology of attention disorders. In S. J. Segalowitz & I. Rapin (Eds.), Handbook of neuropsychology (2nd ed.). Netherlands: Elsevier Science.

    Google Scholar 

  • Toplak, M. E., Rucklidge, J. J., Hetherington, R., John, S. C. F., & Tannock, R. (2003). Time perception deficits in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Comorbid Reading Difficulties in child and adolescent samples. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 44, 888–903.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Torgesen, J., Wagner, R., & Rashotte, C. (1999). Test of Word Reading Efficiency (TOWRE). Cognitive Concepts, Inc.

  • Wagner, R. K., Torgesen, J. K., & Rashotte, C. A. (1999). Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP). Austin, Texas: Pro-Ed.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler, D. (1999). Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI). USA: The Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler, D. (1991). Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition. USA: The Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler, D. (1997). Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Third Edition. USA: The Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wetherill, G. B., Levitt, H. (1965). Sequential estimation of points on a psychological function. British Journal of Math and Statistical Psychology, 18, 1–10.

    Google Scholar 

  • West, J., Douglas, G., Houghton, S., Lawrence, V., Whiting, K., & Glasgow, K. (2000). Time perception in boys with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder according to time duration, distraction and mode of presentation. Child Neuropsychology, 6, 241–250.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkinson, G. S. (1993). WRAT3 Administration Manual. Delaware: Wide Range.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolf, M. (1999). What time may tell: Towards a new conceptualization of developmental dyslexia. Annals of Dyslexia, 49, 3–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolf, M. (2001). Dyslexia, fluency, and the brain. (Edited volume). Timonium, Maryland: York Press, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Brain and Behaviour Research Program, Research Institute of The Hospital for Sick Children, Ontario, Canada

    Maggie E. Toplak & Rosemary Tannock

  2. Brain & Behaviour Research Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5G 1X8

    Rosemary Tannock

Authors
  1. Maggie E. Toplak
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Rosemary Tannock
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rosemary Tannock.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Toplak, M.E., Tannock, R. Time Perception: Modality and Duration Effects in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). J Abnorm Child Psychol 33, 639–654 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-005-6743-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-005-6743-6

Key Words

Search

Navigation