It's About Time: Applying a Daily Diary Design to Investigate the Dynamic Relationships between Temporal Perspective and Well-Being
Date
2013-09-30
Authors
Rush, Jonathan
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Abstract
Temporal perspective is a multi-dimensional term for how individuals focus attention toward the past, present, and future. There have been few investigations into the relationship between temporal perspective and well-being. Temporal perspective has predominantly been measured with single-occasion measurement designs, which ignore the potential for within-person variations that may be important in accounting for fluctuations in well-being. The current study examined the dimensions of temporal perspective (temporal focus, temporal attitude, and temporal distance) and their dynamic relationships with well-being. A 14-day daily diary design was employed to examine whether people fluctuate in their temporal perspective, and if these fluctuations systematically covary with daily well-being. The results from multilevel analyses supported the following conclusions: (a) there is evidence of within-person variability in daily temporal perspective, and (b) this within-person variability in temporal perspective fluctuates systematically with fluctuations in daily well-being. Each temporal perspective dimension was useful in predicting daily well-being.
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temporal focus, temporal attitude, temporal distance