Future Anxiety: concept, measurement, and preliminary research

The author introduces the concept of Future Anxiety (FA) as a personality characteristic. Within the cognitive approach, the subjective future time perspective is described as the basis of FA. In reference to other propositions and anxiety concepts the common features with other types of anxiety and its specificity are discussed. The 29-item measurement scale (FAS) is presented with reliability indices for the English and Polish versions. Also some preliminary results are reported. High FA appeared to be more related to manipulative treatment of others in order to assure one's own future. More specifically, high FA scorers tend to use harder power strategies to influence others in the superior-subordinate situation. Also, high FA scorers express greater pessimism in predicting future solution to global problems faced by humanity. Other FA relationships are under investigation.