Present-fatalistic time perspective and life satisfaction: The moderating role of age

Abstract

Present-fatalistic time perspective refers to a fatalistic, helpless, and hopeless attitude toward the future and life, and researches have suggested it was negatively associated with life satisfaction. However, age may moderate such an association. In the current study, participants aged 12 to 84 years (N = 1598) finished measures of present-fatalistic time perspective and satisfaction with life. Then moderation analysis was conducted to examine whether age would moderate the association between the present-fatalistic time perspective and life satisfaction. Results indicated that age played a moderating role in the association between the present-fatalistic time perspective and life satisfaction across the lifespan. Specifically, present-fatalistic time perspective and life satisfaction were negatively correlated in participants with younger and middle age, but not correlated in older participants. The limitations of this study and future directions are discussed.