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My own thinking on this is along the lines that at the fall of Numenor the world kind of split into two - Tolkien states that the High Elves (at least) live in both worlds at once. Say the world was originally (ie pre- FoN) flat. At the fall the world splits into flat & round. Mortals are seperated off into the round world as a consequence of the Numenorean's actions, but the elves aren't so limited. They continue to exist in the dimension of the flat world but they also find themselves in the round world of Arda.
Further speculation - time runs differently in the flat world after the FoN - more slowly if at all due to the flat world now being subsumed into the spiritual realm. So the Elves would find themselves existing in both the 'timeless' flat/spiritual world and the temporal round/physical world. The effect of this must have been psychologically quite traumatic & possibly explains their (increasing) desire to halt time in the physical world - effectively to bring the two worlds into alignment. I suppose the Elven ideal would not just have been to halt time in the physical world but, if possible to 'flatten it out' again.
Of course, the rings were created before the FoN so it could be argued that the desire to halt time & change probably always existed in the Elven psyche, but we don't know that that was the original intent behind the creation of the rings - maybe they were created for other reasons & only after the fall was it realised that they could serve the purpose I've suggested.
I don't know if this works as a theory but it would account for the increasingly isolationist/unworldly attitude of the Elves in the later Third Age - they would be faced with an increasing split between the worlds, as the round world, subject to time & change moved futher & further away from the timeless state of the flat world. It would also increase their desire to leave Middle earth & go back to Valinor - ie to go & live in the world/dimension which most suited their nature.
It would be interesting if the actions of Men in Numenor were responsible for the psycho-spiritual problems of Elves in the Third Age & eventually forced them to leave. Also it opens up the question of Eru's motivation in changing the shape of the world - was it simply to protect Valinor & punish the Numenoreans for their hubristic assault on the Blessed Realm, or was it also motivated by a desire to bring the Elves home to Aman, thereby freeing up Men to assume their destined dominant role in Middle earth?
Now, I'm sure there are those more knowlageable in Tolkieniana than I am who can demolish that little edifice......
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