Temporal Inventory on Meaning and Experience: A Structure of Time

Abstract

Beliefs of nonscientists concerning meanings and experiences of time were assessed by developing and administering a sixty-five-statement questionnaire, the Temporal Inventory on Meaning and Experience. The statements reflected a broad range of conceptions of time and temporal experience which have been expressed by physicists and psychologists. The findings reveal an interesting factor structure of beliefs about physical time, personal time, and duration experience. Comparisons of the beliefs of the respondents with scientific theories and evidence produce insights and implications on the study of time and consciousness.