Counting the Wait: Effects of Temporal Feedback on Downstream Task Performance and Perceived Wait-Time Experience during System-Imposed Delays

TL;DR

This study investigates how different types of temporal feedback during system delays affect user perception, frustration, and task performance, revealing that feedback mode influences experience but not actual performance.

Contribution

It provides empirical evidence on how Remaining-Time and Elapsed-Time feedback modes impact user frustration and perception during waits, with implications for system design.

Findings

Remaining-Time feedback increases frustration

No Time Display makes waits feel longer

Feedback mode does not affect task performance

Abstract

System-imposed wait times can significantly disrupt digital workflows, affecting user experience and task performance. Prior HCI research has examined how temporal feedback, such as feedback mode (Elapsed-Time vs. Remaining-Time) shapes wait-time perception. However, few studies have investigated how such feedback influences users' downstream task performance, as well as overall affective and cognitive experience. To study these effects, we conducted an online experiment where 425 participants performing a visual reasoning task experienced a 10-, 30-, or 60-second wait with a Remaining-Time, Elapsed-Time, or No Time Display. Findings show that temporal feedback mode shapes how waiting is perceived: Remaining-Time feedback increased frustration relative to Elapsed-Time feedback, while No Time Display made waits feel longer and heightened ambiguity. Notably, these experiential differences did not translate into differences in post-wait task performance. Integrating psychophysical and cognitive science perspectives, we discuss implications for implementing temporal feedback in latency-prone digital systems.