Time represented in space: Bar better than ring while waiting

The use of visual representations of time is common in both research and daily life, with progress icons, such as bars and rings, being popular examples. Despite some studies investigating the advantage of different shapes, there has been no consistent result from questionnaires. This study aims to investigate this topic by using an objective temporal reproduction task to compare the potential difference between short and long waiting times, as evidence indicates that the temporal machinery could be different within and beyond 2-3 s. The study also explores the role of the percentage of progress icons. Two groups of participants first experienced a short (3 s) or long (15 s) duration with a dynamic progress icon, which varied by shape (bar vs. ring) and progress percentage (20% vs. 80%). Then they reproduced the duration with a button, seeing a neutral grey square on the screen. The results revealed that the reproduced durations of bars were significantly shorter than those of rings, but only for the long duration condition (15 s). Additionally, a larger progress percentage led to longer reproductions for both 3 s and 15 s. These findings suggest that the spatial configuration is significant when the waiting time is relatively long, supporting the hierarchical model of temporal perception. Overall, this study contributes to both industrial design and our understanding of the cognitive mechanism of temporal perception.