TIME ATTITUDE PROFILES IN AMERICAN ADOLESCENTS: EDUCATIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL CORRELATES

Abstract

Previous research has suggested that time attitude profiles play a greater role in differentiating between adaptive and maladaptive outcomes than individual time attitude scores. In this manuscript, we examined this claim in two samples of American adolescents. The Study 1 sample consisted of 300 participants aged 12 to 19 (M = 16.06, SD = 1.25; 40% female) from diverse ethnic-racial groups. In this sample, we looked at the bivariate correlations between time attitudes and (a) other time constructs (consideration of future consequences, hope, optimism, perceived life chances), (b) academic constructs (academic self-concept, valuing education, perceived barriers to attending college, and school belonging), and (c) expected job discrimination on the basis of gender and ethnicity/race. We also examined the association between these constructs and time attitude profiles. The Study 2 sample consisted of 748 adolescents aged 11 to 20 (M = 15.71, SD = 1.53; 54% female), also from diverse ethnic-racial backgrounds. Similar analyses were conducted in Study 2, but with hopelessness, abstract and concrete attitudes toward education, past discrimination, and expected job discrimination on the basis of gender, ethnicity/race, and income. In both studies, time attitude profiles were strongly associated with outcomes, even when time attitudes were not correlated with the variables. Thus, time attitude profiles seem to be a strong general predictor of adolescent functioning across multiple domains. The findings highlight the importance of time attitude profiles and suggest that these may be useful targets for intervention.

Disclosure statement

The first author is a co-author of the time attitude measure used in the study.