Time perception and cognitive flexibility in bilingual adults: a neuropsychological approach
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Дата
2025-12-26
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Видавець
Alfred Nobel University
Анотація
In modern psychological and neuropsychological studies, the perception of time is considered as a complex multidimensional cognitive phenomenon that plays a key role in regulating behaviour, planning activities, forming life strategies, and adapting the personality to changing environmental conditions. In psychological terms, time is not only a subjective experience of duration or sequence of events, but also an integrative mental construct that combines attention, memory, executive functions, emotional regulation, and the individual’s sociocultural experience. The study of factors that contribute to effective time regulation in adulthood, in particular cognitive flexibility and bilingualism, is of particular relevance.
The aim of the study is to conduct a comprehensive theoretical analysis of the perception of time as a multidimensional cognitive phenomenon and to determine the role of cognitive flexibility and bilingualism in the formation of neuropsychological mechanisms of time regulation, adaptive behaviour, and executive control in adulthood.
Research methods. The article uses methods of theoretical analysis, synthesis, comparison, and generalization of the results of modern psychological, neuropsychological, and cognitive studies devoted to the problem of temporal information processing, executive functions, and the influence of bilingualism on cognitive development. Interdisciplinary scientific approaches are analysed, allowing us to consider the perception of time in the context of neural mechanisms, cognitive processes, and sociocultural conditions of life.Within the framework of theoretical analysis, the position is that the perception of time is the result of the interaction of neuropsychological structures and functional systems of the brain, in particular the prefrontal cortex, basal ganglia, cerebellum, the hippocampus, and the parietal areas, which ensure the accuracy of time interval assessment, the formation of event sequences, and the subjective experience of the passage of time. It is shown that the effectiveness of time regulation largely depends on the level of development of executive functions, primarily cognitive flexibility, which determines an individual’s ability to mentally switch, correct time estimates, and optimally manage cognitive resources.
Particular attention is paid to the analysis of cognitive flexibility as a multilevel construct that encompasses cognitive, emotional-regulatory, and behavioural components. It has been proven that impaired cognitive flexibility is accompanied by a distortion of subjective perception of time, difficulties in predicting future events, and a decrease in an individual’s adaptive potential in conditions of rapid social change.
Particular emphasis is placed on the role of bilingualism as a factor in the development of cognitive flexibility and specific features of time processing in adulthood. A summary of the results of recent studies shows that regular switching between languages activates executive mechanisms, promotes the functional reorganization of frontal-parietal neural networks, and increases the accuracy of time interval estimation and the effectiveness of self-regulation. Bilingualism is considered as an important cognitive resource that provides more flexible control of attention, information processing speed, and adaptation to complex sociocultural contexts.
Conclusions. It is substantiated that the perception of time is an integrative cognitive mechanism that is formed through the interaction of neuropsychological processes, executive functions, and sociocultural factors. Cognitive flexibility and bilingualism are key resources for the development of effective time regulation, adaptive behaviour, and executive control in adulthood. The theoretical generalizations obtained can be used in further empirical research, as well as in the practice of psychological counselling, psychoeducation, and cognitive development programs for adults.
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Ключові слова
time perception, neuropsychology, cognitive flexibility, executive functions, bilingualism, cognitive control, temporal intervals, adaptive behaviour, сприйняття часу, нейропсихологія, когнітивна гнучкість, виконавчі функції, білінгвізм, когнітивний контроль, часові інтервали, адаптивна поведінка