Time to believe: Disentangling the complex associations between time perspective and religiosity

Previous research has demonstrated the essential role of time perspective (TP) for numerous vital outcomes, such as health, social behaviors, and well-being. Surprisingly, though, to date the association between TP and religiosity has not been systematically investigated. In the present paper, in a series of three studies (a total N > 700), we provide an in-depth empirical insight into the complex interplay between individual differences in the process of temporal framing of human experience and various features of religiosity, including general belief in God, Allport's religious orientations, Huber's centrality of religiosity, and religious fundamentalism. Most importantly, we discovered that positive aspects of religiosity correlated with Past-Positive and Future(-Positive) TP. On the other hand, present temporal focus was associated with instrumental and fundamentalist approaches to religious belief. Altogether, then, our results suggest that religiosity is linked to a broad temporal profile. Moreover, it was also found that associations between time perspectives and religiosity remain significant after controlling for personality traits. The present paper discusses these findings in light of time perspective theory and reflects upon possible causal mechanisms underpinning the observed associations.