Reconstruction of the duration of autobiographical events

Abstract

In two experiments, subjects estimated autobiographical event duration. Ornstein's (1969) storage-size model of duration estimation was tested in Experiment 1 by using 187 autobiographical events with an actual duration range of 3-550 days. Subjects' diaries were used to obtain information about these events, which occurred up to 20 years before the study. Contrary to the predictions of Ornstein's model, estimated duration was not proportional to event knowledge, nor was any evidence of a time-order error effect or the filled-duration illusion found. Estimated duration was reasonably accurate, even when the event could not be remembered, suggesting that subjects may have reconstructed event duration. Evidence consistent with duration reconstruction through the use of general event knowledge was found in Experiment 2: Subjects provided with general descriptions of the events used in Experiment 1 gave estimates similar to those obtained in Experiment 1 for specific events. © 1992 Psychonomic Society, Inc.