The Effect of Future Time Perspective on Emotions and Personal Goals

Abstract

Drawing on Socioemotional Selectivity Theory, which explains how the future time perspective changes throughout one’s lifetime, we investigated the effect of manipulating time perspective on positive and negative affect, and personal goal selection. An experiment was conducted using an imaginary task that hypothetically and explicitly altered participants’ time perspective. 60 younger adults and 60 older adults (N = 120) were assigned to one of the following experimental conditions: open future time (30 younger adults and 30 older adults) and limited future time (30 younger adults and 30 older adults). Results revealed that positive affect is not modified by alterations in the future time perspective, while negative affect increased. Goal patterns also change, in line with Socioemotional Selectivity Theory. Although younger and older adults in ordinary life circumstances perceive time left to live differently, some emotion and goal patterns emerge when they face explicit hypothetical alterations of time.