How Tech Has Changed Our Sense and Perception of Time?

Do you ever wonder why time flies by so fast when you’re doomscrolling? Or why it almost stops when you’re planking during a workout?

Turns out, humans are not the only ones who perceive time. However, we are the only ones who can manipulate it.

How? Let’s find out!

What are Chronos and Kairos: The Dual Faces of Time?

Since the birth of humanity, the way we perceive time has evolved a lot.

From sundials to smartphones, our tools shape not only how we measure time but also how we experience it.

The Greeks had two words for time: Chronos and Kairos.

Chronos represents chronological or sequential time, the quantitative measure we are most familiar with today. Clocks, calendars, stopwatches, etc. all are a part of Chronos.

Kairos, on the other hand, is qualitative. It’s the way we feel about and in particular moments.

Historically, societies relied more on Kairos. Agrarian cultures, for instance, operated according to the cycles of nature, where the concept of 'time' was fluid, driven by seasons and daylight.

But with the Industrial Revolution, Chronos began to dominate.

The invention of the mechanical clock in the 14th century marked a significant shift, enforcing a rigid structure in daily life. It aligned human activity with the precise cadence of machines to enable better “coordination and productivity”.

Why Does Tech Have a Psychological Impact on Time Perception?

Modern tech has further implanted Chronos deeper into our lives and that too with an unimaginable complexity.

The “always-on” nature of digital devices creates a continuous stream of notifications and updates, fracturing our sense of time.

Our constant connectivity leads to a distorted perception of time, often described as 'time compression'. It is when we are lost in our screens, especially while interacting with persuasive tech like social media and gaming.

Conversely, 'time dilation' occurs in stressful or monotonous situations. For example, waiting for a webpage to load or a video to buffer can feel disproportionately long. This dichotomy illustrates how technology can both speed up and slow down our subjective experience of time.

But it’s not just the speed of time that gets altered with tech.

Cognitive linguistics offers insights into how language and thought interact with our perception of time.

Metaphors play a crucial role here. We often speak of time as money ('spending time,' 'saving time'), highlighting its perceived scarcity and value.

Tech often leverages these metaphors, escalating the urgency and immediacy of our interactions.

Push notifications, for example, create a sense of 'present bias,' where immediate rewards are valued more highly than future ones, compelling us to act now rather than later.

Similarly, Temporal illusions occur when there is a discrepancy between our subjective experience of time and the actual passage of time.

For example, the 'Oddball Effect’ is when an unexpected event is perceived to last longer than a routine one. This can be exploited by persuasive technologies to grab and hold our attention.

By introducing novel stimuli at strategic intervals, apps and platforms can make certain moments feel longer and more engaging, altering our overall sense of time spent.

How Tech Uses Rhetorical Tools Come Into Play In Manipulating Time Perception?

Understanding the rhetorical tools used by persuasive tech is essential in decoding its impact on our sense of time.

Ethos, pathos, and logos are the pillars of rhetoric that come into play.

• Ethos: is an appeal to credibility or character, convincing the audience of the speaker's authority and trustworthiness.

• Pathos: is an appeal to emotions, persuading the audience by eliciting feelings like sympathy, anger, or happiness.

• Logos: is an appeal to logic and reason, using facts, statistics, and rational arguments to persuade the audience.

Any successful marketing strategy encompasses all 3 in a perfect proportion.

Tech companies build ethos with user testimonials and expert endorsements. They appeal to pathos with personalized content and FOMO-triggering notifications. They use logos by presenting data that promise ‘productivity’ and life improvement.

The power of persuasive tech lies in its ability to seamlessly integrate these rhetorical elements, creating an environment where our temporal perception is constantly being nudged and molded.

So don’t blame yourself if you waste hours doomscrolling next time. You have been targeted very precisely to do that. However, this should kick in your self-preservation.

More importantly, you must reclaim agency over your most valuable resource: time.

Resources:

1. Is subjective duration a signature of coding efficiency?

2. Ethos, Logos, and Pathos: The Structure of a Great Speech

3. Chronos vs Kairos: Understanding how the Ancient Greeks viewed time will make your life richer