Distortions to the passage of time for annual events: Exploring why Christmas and Ramadan feel like they come around more quickly each year.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Commonly heard statements such as "Christmas comes around more quickly each year" suggest that the passage of time between annual events can become distorted, leading to the sensation of time passing more quickly than normal. At present however, it is unclear how prevalent such beliefs are and, what factors are predictive of it.

Aim

To explore the prevalence of beliefs that annual events such as Christmas (Study 1 UK sample) and Ramadan (Study 2 Iraqi sample) feel like they come around more quickly each year. To establish the association between distortions to the passage of time between annual events and emotional wellbeing, event specific enjoyment, memory function and self-reported attention to time.

Methods

Participants completed an online questionnaire

SUBMITTER: Ogden R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11236143 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature