Does Self-Projection Have a Dominant Temporal Direction? In Nine Countries, People Feel More Similar to Their Future Than Past Selves
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
Published online on July 18, 2026
Abstract
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Ahead of Print.
Do you project your current self—the person you are today—equally across time? Compared to the present, 12 studies (totalN= 11,416) reveal that people feel more similar to their future selves than their equidistant past selves. This future-oriented ...
Do you project your current self—the person you are today—equally across time? Compared to the present, 12 studies (totalN= 11,416) reveal that people feel more similar to their future selves than their equidistant past selves. This future-oriented ...