Intentional binding of two effects.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Perception

Background:

• Intentional Binding (IB) describes the perceived temporal compression between an action and its effect.
• Existing research typically examines single action-effect pairings.
• Real-world actions often involve sequences of effects, necessitating further investigation into IB mechanisms in such contexts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the Intentional Binding effect (IB) for two consecutive action-produced effects.
• To determine how the temporal relationship and predictability of sequential effects influence IB.

Main Methods:

• Participants performed actions that produced two distinct effect tones in sequence.
• Temporal judgments of action-effect timing were collected.
• Experiments varied the temporal predictability and delay of the second effect tone.

Main Results:

• A significantly stronger Intentional Binding effect was observed for the first effect tone compared to the second.
• This pattern persisted regardless of whether the second tone was temporally predictable.
• The strength of IB for the second tone was influenced by its delay, with shorter delays yielding stronger binding.

Conclusions:

• Events occurring later in an action-effect sequence can be bound to the causing action.
• The degree of binding for later effects appears more sensitive to temporal delay than their sequential position.
• Understanding IB in sequential action-effect contexts is crucial for comprehending real-world agency perception.