Dimensions of Schizophrenia Spectrum Symptomatology and Time Perception: a Systematic Review

One facet of time experience is time perception, defined as the perception of duration and speed of passing time (distinguished from temporal processing, ie, the order of events in time). Time perception is known to be disordered across the schizophrenia spectrum and claims have been made about the differential relations between time perception abnormalities and schizophrenia symptom dimensions (eg, positive and negative), yet research has not elucidated how such dimensions relate to time perception task performance. This article systematically reviews studies of time perception in schizophrenia spectrum disorders, with a specific focus on methodologies used for symptom assessment, diagnosis, and time perception behavioral tasks.

Following PRISMA guidelines, all publications on PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science were searched. Of the 1017 records identified, 20 studies were included in the review.

Findings were mixed, with half of studies reporting no correlation between time perception measures and any symptom dimension, and the other half reporting associations between time perception abnormalities and positive or negative symptoms. Significant methodological heterogeneity was found across studies, both in terms of how symptom dimensions were assessed and which behavioral time perception tasks were utilized. Studies varied in terms of quality.

The current literature does not support a strong association between any specific schizophrenia spectrum symptom dimension (positive, negative, or disorganized) and aberrant time perception as measured by behavioral tasks. Future research must address methodological and diagnostic heterogeneity before drawing strong conclusions regarding schizophrenia spectrum symptomatology and time perception.