Time Perspective and Career Decision-Making Difficulties in Adults

Decision making is not only contingent upon what takes place in the present but also on how one feels about the past and one's hopes for the future. However, when it comes to time perspective and career decision making, vocational psychology has focused exclusively on future time perspective. The present study examines the relations among past, present, and future time perspectives and career decision-making difficulties in a sample of 195 adults seeking career counseling services. Participants completed the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI) and the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire (CDDQ). Results from canonical correlation analysis produced three significant canonical variates. The results indicate that different patterns in time perspective are associated with different types of career decision-making difficulties. Areas for future research regarding time perspective and career decision making are discussed.