Temporal Asymmetry of Pleasant and Unpleasant Feelings Among Chinese Adolescents

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that anticipation induces more emotions than retrospection, known as temporal emotion asymmetry. However, the majority of previous studies have been confined to Western contexts. Eastern populations tend to emphasize the past more than their Western counterparts and may exhibit distinct forms of temporal emotion asymmetry. Therefore, we conducted an investigation involving Chinese adolescents. Our research encompassed two experiments, investigating Chinese adolescents’ temporal emotion asymmetry from a self-perspective (Experiment 1; N = 124) and an other-perspective (Experiment 2; N = 162). Participants were prompted to retrospect and anticipate events that elicited pleasant or unpleasant feelings. The results revealed that, whether from a self-perspective or an other-perspective, retrospection of past positive events elicited greater pleasure than the anticipation of future positive events. However, concerning adverse events, under a self-perspective, anticipation induced more displeasure than retrospection (Experiment 1); under an other-perspective, retrospection induced more displeasure than anticipation (Experiment 2). Our findings provide some support for the construal level theory, fading affect bias, and mobilization-minimization hypothesis of event cognition. Based on these results, retrospection seems to be a potential means for regulating the emotions of Chinese adolescents.

Keywords:

• Temporal asymmetry
• pleasantness
• unpleasantness
• retrospection
• anticipation

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the ethics committee of Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University. IRB No. Approved: H22103

Informed Consent

Informed consent forms were signed by all parents of minors.

Authors’ Contributions

Hao and Lyu conceived of the study, participated in its design and coordination and drafted the manuscript; Hu, Shen and Hu participated in the design and interpretation of the data. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Disclosure Statement

No disclosure statement is required if not provided by the authors.

Data Availability Statement

This study was not preregistered. The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the 2021 Chongqing Educational Science “14th Five-Year Plan” (grant no. 2021-GX-003), and key project and 2021 Chongqing Municipal Social Science Planning Key Project (grant no. 2021NDZD09), and Major Project of the National Social Science Foundation of China (Project Number: 22&ND184).

Notes on contributors

Haiping Hao

Haiping Hao is a doctoral student in psychology at Southwest University. His main research interests are time personality, future thinking, time perspective and time-space metaphor.

Qiao Hu

Qiao Hu is a master’s student at WuHan University. Her research interest is episodic future thinking and educational management.

Xi Shen

Xi Shen is a doctoral student in psychology at Southwest University. Her main research interests are Internet addiction and youth development.

Yiqiao Hu

Yiqiao Hu is teacher at Central South University. Her research interest is episodic future thinking and educational management.

Houchao Lyu

Houchao Lyu, PhD in Psychology, is a professor and doctoral supervisor in the Department of Psychology of Southwest University and a visiting scholar at the University of Chicago. His main research interests are time personality, future thinking, community psychology and grassroots community governance, social-psychological service system construction, youth mental health and values.