Perception of brief time -interval durations in people who do and do not stutter

People who stutter frequently express negative effects of time pressure upon their speech. Time pressure may take two forms: external time pressure is perceived from responses to environmental stimuli and internal time pressure is perceived from responses to internal experiences of the person. Underlying each form of time pressure is a person\u27s perception of time itself. This study reviews the psychological and speech pathology literatures on time perception. The attentional-gate model for prospective durations is proposed to explain variants of time perception for brief durations (zero to five seconds). The model provides a rationale upon which four research questions were proposed. The questions ask if people who stutter differ from people who do not stutter in (1) the perception of silent brief time durations heard, (2) the perception of time intervals during disrupted speech moments, (3) the number of experiences of which they are aware during disrupted speech moments, and (4) the perception of naturalness of disrupted speech moments. No significant differences between groups were found in the perception of silent brief time durations heard or the perception of time intervals during disrupted speech moments. However, significant differences between groups were found in the number of experiences of which they were aware and the ratings of naturalness during disrupted speech moments. Results are discussed integrating considerations of the model, current knowledge of what contributes to disrupted speech in people who stutter, and possible clinical implications. Directions for future research are also proposed