Psychology Of Time: Why Does It Pass Differently For Each Person?

Sometimes it feels like time goes by faster, especially when we’re happy. When we’re having fun, time seems to fly by. On the other hand, when we’re having a bad time, it seems to go very slowly. Although time always passes at the same speed, our perception is that it passes in different ways. Starting from this point, the psychology of time goes further and explains how these different perceptions influence our behavior.

The Good Samaritan experiment gives us an idea of ​​how the perception of time affects behavior. In this experiment, researchers informed some seminarians that they had to go to another building to give a lecture. While some were told they had a long time to arrive, others were told they were late – and that there were already people waiting for them.

Along the way, a person was lying on the ground, poorly dressed and looking sick. Most seminarians who had a long time stopped to help, but those who were in a hurry passed right by. Interestingly, the seminarians were going to give a lecture on the parable of the Good Samaritan.

One of the conclusions drawn from this experiment was that time manipulation was the cause of the different behavior. Those in a hurry were future-oriented. They went with their minds focused on getting there on time and didn’t stop to help. On the contrary, those who weren’t in a hurry were more present oriented and stopped to help.

Now let’s delve into the psychology of time to learn more.

Different perceptions of time according to the psychology of time

Based on the findings of the Good Samaritan study, two researchers, Philip Zimbardo and John Boyd, plunged into the study of the psychology of time. His work culminated in a categorization of temporal perspectives. According to Zimbardo and Boyd, there are six temporal perspectives and people often give more importance to one of them, becoming more oriented towards one than the others. These are:

positive past

People with a “positive past” orientation remember the past with joy.  They try to recall the past in the present, replaying the memories. Generally they tend to be warm, sentimental, friendly and self-assured. They are almost never anxious or depressed and tend not to be aggressive. They like music and old movies. They love family gatherings, gatherings and group celebrations. Usually they keep objects from the past with symbolic value.

negative past

Another type of time perspective is the “negative past”. For those people who are more oriented towards this perspective, the past is half empty.  They hope to be able to get rid of bad experiences from the past, which they don’t recommend to anyone. Usually they don’t have many friends and the few who do describe them as unhappy, depressed, anxious and quite shy. Sometimes they get so frustrated that they lose control, being able to break things. They usually don’t exercise or do anything fun, controlling their impulses very poorly.

hedonistic gift

Another time perspective is “hedonistic present”. People who are more oriented towards this perspective are more creative and have many friends. They are energetic and love adventures. When they go to a party, they’re the ones that stand out and most often make everyone laugh. Their motto is “if it’s fun, do it”, and because of that, they don’t last long in jobs. They are very impulsive.  They also frequently focus on risky behavior.

fatalistic gift

People who have a “fatalistic present” orientation often lack self-confidence. This causes them to be depressed and anxious. They are always “down”, not being very excited people. A phrase that characterizes them well is: “whatever has to be, will be”. Among its practices are risk behaviors, such as drug use. They trust that fate determines their lives, no matter what they do.

Future

Other people are more “future-oriented”. They are guided by a realistic principle, balancing immediate benefits against future costs. They are able to reject instant gratification in order to receive greater rewards in the future.

They usually have a lot of acquaintances but not a lot of friends. They are very concerned about consequences and therefore don’t like new things or excitement. They are always planning everything and making lots of lists. These people wear watches and seem to spend their lives chasing every second. Furthermore, if anything characterizes them, it is prudence and risk aversion.

transcendental future

Those who have a transcendental future orientation are usually linked to a religion. These people believe in life after death, are part of a religious cult and perform the rites appropriate to their religion, whether privately or publicly. They tend to have good impulse control, are not aggressive, and are concerned about the consequences their actions may have in the future.

What is the time perspective that guides your life? The creators of temporal perspectives offer the possibility to know your perspective on time by filling out a questionnaire (in English) on their website. It should be borne in mind that these perspectives are not a fixed trait and can change over time due to various factors.