A neuropsychological approach to time estimation

Time estimation, within a range of seconds, involves cognitive functions which depend on multiple brain regions. Here we report on studies investigating the reproduction and production of three durations (5, 14, and 38 seconds) in four groups of patients. The amnesic patient underproduced the length of the long durations because of episodic memory deficit following bilateral medial temporal lesions. Epileptic patients (n = 9) with right medial temporal lobe resections underproduced the three durations because of a distorted representation of time in long-term memory. Traumatic brain injury patients (n = 15) made more variable duration productions and reproductions because of working memory deficits following frontal-lobe dysfunction. Patients with Parkinson's disease (n = 18) overproduced the short duration and underproduced the long duration because of a possible increase in internal clock speed following levodopa treatment, as well as working memory deficits associated with frontal-lobe damage. Further research, in neurological and psychiatric patients, is required to better understand the underlying mechanisms of time estimation.