Unless you happen to work for Lumon Industries—where, like in Severance, the workday never truly ends—a cancelled meeting can feel like an unexpected gift of time, that sudden opening in your schedule often feels larger than it really is, as though the day has briefly expanded and given you room to breathe.

A study from Rutgers University, published in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, helps explain this phenomenon. Researchers found that when people unexpectedly gain time, it alters how long that time feels, which in turn shapes how they choose to use it. In simple terms, a free hour that appears out of nowhere does not feel like an ordinary hour.

“An hour gained feels longer than 60 minutes, and that deviation from expectation creates a unique sense of opportunity,” said Gabriela Tonietto, associate professor of marketing at Rutgers Business School and lead author of the study. Her broader research has explored time management challenges such as over-scheduling, the experience of “time famine,” and even the surprising value of having nothing to do.

To investigate further, Tonietto and colleagues from Ohio State University, the University of Toronto, and Peking University conducted seven surveys with more than 2,300 participants. In the first set of surveys, people compared unexpected free time with time that had always been available. The findings showed that gained time feels subjectively longer, likely because it is mentally contrasted with having no free time at all.

The researchers then examined how people actually use this so-called “windfall time.” Across additional surveys, participants consistently chose longer activities than they otherwise would. Whether productive or leisurely, people tended to stretch their choices—opting for a longer task, a slower coffee break, or a more relaxed use of their time simply because it felt more abundant.

The takeaway is that a sense of time abundance makes more feel possible, but it does not always lead to greater productivity. In fact, when time is freed up unexpectedly—especially at the last minute—people are more likely to drift towards leisure. So when a meeting is cancelled, it may feel like a small gift; how you use it, however, still depends on how you choose to spend that unexpected space in your day.

More information: Gabriela Tonietto et al, Gained Time Is Expanded: Examining the Psychological and Behavioral Consequences of Gaining Time, Journal of the Association for Consumer Research. DOI: 10.1086/740288

Journal information: Journal of the Association for Consumer Research Provided by Rutgers University