The following is a summary of “Time on Our Side: An Exploratory Investigation of the Relationship between Psychiatric Disorder and Time Attitudes,” published in the December 2023 issue of Psychiatry by McKay et al.

Temporal attitudes are crucial in individuals’ perceptions of the past, present, and future. The Adolescent and Adult Time Inventory-Time Attitudes Scale has been linked to various aspects of well-being and psychiatric symptomatology. However, there’s a gap in exploring the relationship between Time Attitudes scores and psychiatric disorders. 

This study investigated this association within a clinical cohort (N = 68) and assessed the correlation between time attitudes, lifetime disorder, and retrospective childhood trauma. The mean scores for the six-time attitudes in this study were consistent with recent meta-analytical findings. Notably, correlations between time attitude scores and retrospective trauma were notably prominent, particularly for past negative and past positive attitudes. 

Participants without past or current disorders reported significantly higher positive and notably lower negative attitudes across all periods than those with disorders, indicating distinct differences in effect sizes. After accounting for retrospectively reported childhood trauma, past negative time attitudes were significantly linked with lifetime mood or anxiety disorders. These findings underscore the potential significance of time attitudes beyond general well-being and psychiatric symptoms, indicating a possible role in psychiatric disorders. However, further comprehensive studies involving larger sample sizes are crucial to delve deeper into the relationship between time attitudes and psychiatric disorders.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022395623005745