ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on timing in the range of seconds to minutes. Timing behavior refers both to time perception and time production. Three types of explanations are considered: behavioristic, biological, and psychological. Time perception refers to the ability of animals to discriminate the duration of an event. The recognition that a time interval can be a conditioned stimulus has been attributed to research in I. Pavlov’s laboratory conducted between 1907 and 1916. A temporal regularity in the duration of a response and a subject-controlled reinforcement also leads to accurate time production. Studies of time perception and production demonstrate that animals are sensitive to the durations of stimuli and to the time intervals between stimuli, responses, and outcomes. A behavioristic explanation, as the term is used, is the application of input-output analysis to the study of behavior. This approach has been essential for progress in all the empirical sciences.
