Perceived Speed of Time and Task Affect

Task satisfaction is hypothesized to be a function of the perceived speed of time passage while performing a task. Perceived speed of time passage is manipulated both as an internal state (arousal) and as an environmental context (pattern of background rhythm). The results of an experiment (N = 80) support the hypothesis and are interpreted through an implicit model of task satisfaction, i.e., events that seem to occur quickly are perceived as pleasing. The theoretical implications of the findings are contrasted with other frameworks of explanation of task satisfaction.