Many comparisons involve sequentially presented stimuli, as perforce the case in comparisons of temporal intervals. Interactions of such stimuli are as inevitable as the spatial interactions that yield color and brightness contrast. A memory-trace theory of perception (TToP) is developed and applied to time perception. Duration is estimated based on the memorial strength of the stimuli that signal the initiation of an interval at the time of its termination. Memorial persistence depends on modality and character of the signals, which condition the response to them. When the constant difference limen on the memorial continuum is back-translated to the temporal one it yields a generalized Weber function. Memory traces interact as a function of generalization gradients: Memories of stimuli that are similar enough are aggregated—feature-bound—some veridically, others as illusory conjunctions. The resulting representations may then be judged in a discrimination paradigm, or translated back to the physical domain as reproductions of the intervals. The presentation of a standard stimulus affects the perception of the comparison stimulus, warping the ruler by which it is measured. Complementary effects are predicted for discrimination and adjustment paradigms. Thus configured, the TToP accounts for multiple special effects, variously referred to as distortions, anomalies, and illusions, that are observed with classical psychophysical methods: Scalar and nonscalar timing, modality effects, time-order errors, masking, time warping, lengthening, and Vierordt’s law. Similar processes affect the perception of nontemporal stimuli whenever they are presented in sequential proximity to one another. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

中文翻译：

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时间感知的痕迹理论。

许多比较涉及按顺序呈现的刺激，在时间间隔的比较中就是这种情况。这种刺激的相互作用与产生颜色和亮度对比的空间相互作用一样不可避免。一种记忆轨迹感知理论 (TToP) 被开发并应用于时间感知。持续时间是根据刺激的记忆强度来估计的，这些刺激在其终止时发出间隔开始的信号。记忆持久性取决于信号的形式和特征，这些信号决定了对它们的响应。当纪念连续体上的恒定差异阈值被反向转换为时间变量时，它会产生一个广义的韦伯函数。记忆轨迹作为泛化梯度的函数相互作用：足够相似的刺激记忆被聚合——特征绑定——一些是真实的，另一些是虚幻的连接。然后可以在判别范式中判断得到的表示，或者将其转换回物理域作为间隔的再现。标准刺激的呈现会影响比较刺激的感知，从而扭曲测量它的标尺。预测歧视和调整范式的互补效应。如此配置，TToP 解释了多种特殊效果，不同地称为失真、异常和幻觉，这些是用经典心理物理学方法观察到的：标量和非标量时间、模态效应、时间顺序错误、掩蔽、时间扭曲、延长、和维罗特定律。类似的过程会影响对非时间刺激的感知，只要它们以顺序接近的方式呈现。（PsycInfo 数据库记录 (c) 2021 APA，保留所有权利）