Deviation from balanced time perspective and psychological distress: The mediating roles of cognitive fusion and experiential avoidance

Abstract

The study of Time has a long history, dating back to the earliest days of psychological science in the late 1800s. However, the conceptualization of time perspective has led to a better understanding of individuals' healthy and pathological attitudes toward time dimensions. Similarly, articulated psychological inflexibility components (i.e., Experiential Avoidance (EA) and Cognitive Fusion (CF)) have been found to have solid links with psychopathology, specifically psychological distress. The purpose of this study was to examine the serial mediating functions of EA and CF in the association between Deviation from Balanced Time Perspective (DBTP) and Depression and Anxiety symptoms. Also, a reversed model of serial mediation was tested. A total of 203 participants (155 female) aged between 17–73 (M = 28.45, SD = 11.43) completed measures of time perspective, CF, EA, anxiety, and depression. CF and EA functioned as mediators between DBTP and depression/anxiety in the first mediation model. However, in the reversed model, only the mediation effect for depression was observed. These results emphasize the need for tailoring treatments to the requirements of patients struggling with anxiety and depression symptoms, who may be more susceptible to imbalanced time perspectives and time-entrapped cognitive processes. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.