title: Getting what you expect? Future self-views predict the valence of life events.
abstract: Views on aging have been shown to predict the occurrence of events related to physical health in previous studies. Extending these findings, we investigated the relation between aging-related future self-views and life events in a longitudinal study across a range of different life domains. Participants (N = 593, age range 30-80 years at t1) completed a survey at 2 measurement occasions that were separated by a 4-year interval (t1: 2009, t2: 2013), providing information on domain-specific future self-views as well as on life events that had occurred in the respective domains in-between the 2 measurement occasions. Future self-views measured at t1 predicted the occurrence of subsequent life events corresponding in valence: Participants with more positive (negative) future self-views in a domain reported relatively more positive (negative) life events in the respective domain. In addition, individual differences in future self-views were reinforced by life events that were consistent with these self-views. Accordingly, future self-views can be interpreted in terms of self-fulfilling prophecies: They are related to the likelihood of encountering and remembering life events that further confirm the aging-related future self-views from which they originate. Our study demonstrates the importance of future self-views on aging for development-related outcomes that have an especially high impact on people's lives. (PsycINFO Database Record
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena.
authors.forename: Peggy
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Voss
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Bielefeld University.
authors.forename: Anna E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Kornadt
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena.
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rothermund
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D001290:Attitude; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D015233:Models, Statistical; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012649:Self Concept; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires