HRPYC81
Project 2 Assignment 3 2025
Unique #:
Due Date: 2025
Detailed solutions, explanations, workings
and references.
+27 81 278 3372
, RESEARCH PROPOSAL
TIME PERSPECTIVE AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH ANXIETY AND RISKY
BEHAVIOUR AMONG ADULTS IN SOUTH AFRICA
1. INTRODUCTION
Time perspective refers to the cognitive process through which individuals perceive,
organise, and evaluate their experiences across past, present, and future
dimensions (Zimbardo & Boyd, 2014). This concept has been widely recognised as a
foundational aspect of human cognition, influencing various behaviours and
psychological outcomes, such as decision-making, mental health, and well-being
(Stolarski et al., 2018). Time perspective allows people to mentally transcend the
present and make sense of their experiences by placing them within temporal
frameworks, thereby enabling them to plan, reflect, and regulate their actions. This
capacity is unique to humans and has important implications for psychological
functioning (Lewin, 1951; Zimbardo & Boyd, 2014).
In the South African context, understanding time perspective is particularly important
due to the country's historical, social, and economic challenges that shape
individuals’ past experiences and future outlooks. Social inequality, unemployment,
trauma, and high levels of risky behaviour remain pressing concerns that affect
mental health and individual life choices (Keyser, 2017). Thus, time perspective may
serve as a useful psychological lens to explain these patterns and predict health-
related outcomes.
This research project seeks to examine how the five dimensions of time
perspective—past negative, past positive, present hedonistic, present fatalistic, and
future—relate to anxiety and risky behaviour among South African adults. By using
the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI) and established psychological
measurements, the study aims to understand whether individuals with specific time
orientations are more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety or engage in self-
destructive and impulsive behaviour. This research contributes to the broader field of
cognitive psychology by exploring how individual differences in temporal orientation
relate to two critical mental health and behavioural outcomes.
Varsity Cube 2025 +27 81 278 3372
Project 2 Assignment 3 2025
Unique #:
Due Date: 2025
Detailed solutions, explanations, workings
and references.
+27 81 278 3372
, RESEARCH PROPOSAL
TIME PERSPECTIVE AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH ANXIETY AND RISKY
BEHAVIOUR AMONG ADULTS IN SOUTH AFRICA
1. INTRODUCTION
Time perspective refers to the cognitive process through which individuals perceive,
organise, and evaluate their experiences across past, present, and future
dimensions (Zimbardo & Boyd, 2014). This concept has been widely recognised as a
foundational aspect of human cognition, influencing various behaviours and
psychological outcomes, such as decision-making, mental health, and well-being
(Stolarski et al., 2018). Time perspective allows people to mentally transcend the
present and make sense of their experiences by placing them within temporal
frameworks, thereby enabling them to plan, reflect, and regulate their actions. This
capacity is unique to humans and has important implications for psychological
functioning (Lewin, 1951; Zimbardo & Boyd, 2014).
In the South African context, understanding time perspective is particularly important
due to the country's historical, social, and economic challenges that shape
individuals’ past experiences and future outlooks. Social inequality, unemployment,
trauma, and high levels of risky behaviour remain pressing concerns that affect
mental health and individual life choices (Keyser, 2017). Thus, time perspective may
serve as a useful psychological lens to explain these patterns and predict health-
related outcomes.
This research project seeks to examine how the five dimensions of time
perspective—past negative, past positive, present hedonistic, present fatalistic, and
future—relate to anxiety and risky behaviour among South African adults. By using
the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI) and established psychological
measurements, the study aims to understand whether individuals with specific time
orientations are more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety or engage in self-
destructive and impulsive behaviour. This research contributes to the broader field of
cognitive psychology by exploring how individual differences in temporal orientation
relate to two critical mental health and behavioural outcomes.
Varsity Cube 2025 +27 81 278 3372
