The window, the river, and the novel: examining adolescents' conceptions of the past, the present, and the future.

Time perspective refers to thoughts and attitudes toward the past, the present, and the future and may underlie adolescents' decisions and behaviors about school and work. To develop a greater understanding of the topic we used focus group methodology to examine how adolescents conceptualized the past, the present, and the future. Nineteen adolescents aged 13 to 17 participated in six focus groups. Results from qualitative analyses suggested several patterns in adolescents' conceptualizations of the past, the present, and the future including absolute and fluid definitions, relations among temporal dimensions, and affective qualities. Further, responses were similar between genders, and included unsolicited mention of the relationship between socioeconomic status and time perspective. Findings are discussed in light of extant literature and directions are proposed for research on adolescent time perspective.