The Effect of Emotion on Time Perception in Youth Athletes with Different Alerting Efficiencies

Time perception plays a critical role in executing movements in various competitions. However, less research has been conducted on the alerting component of attention in the processing of time perception, and that the effects of emotion on the alerting network show inconsistent effects. This study is aimed to explore the factors that may influence time perception in youth athletes and these relationships.

A total of 225 participants were recruited to assess alerting efficiency using the Attention Network Test and were divided into high and low alerting efficiency groups based on the front and back 27% of the ranked alerting scores as a dividing metric, and subsequently participants completed Time replication task under different emotionally induced conditions.

Alerting efficiency had a significant effect on time perception, with the high alerting efficiency subjects having higher time estimation accuracy [F (1106) = 6.32, p = 0.013, η = 0.10] and being more inclined to overestimate time perception [F (1106) = 12.64, p = 0.001, η = 0.11]. An interaction was found between emotion and alerting efficiency on time replication ratio [F (2106) = 3.59, p = 0.031, η = 0.08], and further simple effects analyses found that the low alerting efficiency subjects tended to overestimate time in the anger state relative to the happy and neutral states [F (2106) = 5.93, p < 0.01, η = 0.10].

These findings suggest that high alerting efficiency in youth athletes is associated with greater time perception response advantage; The time perception of low alerting efficiency youth athletes was more likely to be affected by emotions. This study provides a reference for the training of time perception and specialized perceptual ability of youth athletes, enriches the index system of psychological selection of youth athletes.