Jeff Joireman, Monte Shaffer, Daniel Balliet, and Alan Strathman created a scale to assess “the extent to which people consider distant vs. immediate consequences of potential behaviors.”
Joireman, J., Shaffer, M., Balliet, D., & Strathman, A. (2012). Promotion orientation explains why future oriented people exercise and eat healthy: Evidence from the two-factor consideration of future consequences 14 scale. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 38, 1272-1287.
For each statement, indicate whether or not the statement is characteristic of you.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 1. I consider how things might be in the future, and try to influence those things with my day-to-day behavior.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 2. Often I engage in a particular behavior in order to achieve outcomes that may not result for many years.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 3. I only act to satisfy immediate concerns, figuring the future will take care of itself.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 4. My behavior is only influenced by the immediate (i.e., a matter of days or weeks) outcomes of my actions.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 5. My convenience is a big factor in the decisions I make or the actions I take.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 6. I am willing to sacrifice my immediate happiness or well-being in order to achieve future outcomes.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 7. I think it is important to take warnings about negative outcomes seriously even if the negative outcome will not occur for many years.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 8. I think it is more important to perform a behavior with important distant consequences than a behavior with less important immediate consequences.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 9. I generally ignore warnings about possible future problems because I think the problems will be resolved before they reach crisis level.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 10. I think that sacrificing now is usually unnecessary since future outcomes can be dealt with at a later time.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 11. I only act to satisfy immediate concerns, figuring that I will take care of future problems that may occur at a later date.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 12. Since my day-to-day work has specific outcomes, it is more important to me than behavior that has distant outcomes.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 13. When I make a decision, I think about how it might affect me in the future.
WodZdn848zSd+hcTimMhaKmLo46YTfRujzD3dLkwkjMNb8ThHaJToVF8ETbcJKZUjDOCgOdKqWkbqqF0MPQadHk3sTldKPMBJiS8pM0nT7q8lRbg9EN8mREEVdy0BoL8AG7kW5P3/fSU6JNf8NICuN9FRI2nS1to5Kxedr/U6YhTnP2Qi6yAnyJudg6eEUT3 14. My behavior is generally influenced by future consequences.
Your Score
Your score is: {model.total}(range is 14 to 70)
Total scores can range from 14 to 70, with higher scores reflecting greater consideration of future consequences. Even among children, a preference for large-later rather than small-now rewards minimizes future risk of problem gambling and smoking. Poverty has been associated with focusing on the present and discounting the future, as when burdening oneself with high-interest payday loans. Delaying gratification—living with one eye on the future—fosters flourishing.
A big part of maturity—and of success in life—is a capacity for delayed gratification. It’s the ability and resolve to postpone immediate gratifications for the greater satisfactions of bigger, future rewards. The researchers report that high scorers—who tend to delay gratification—tend to be more conscientious, hopeful, and optimistic (Joireman et al., 2012). They demonstrate greater health concern, and smoke and drink less. And they display more concern for the future environment, such as by recycling and driving a fuel-efficient car.
Developing one’s ability to delay gratification is part of becoming a mature, productive, and socially responsible person. For example, the immediate costs of exercise include time and inconvenience, but the delayed rewards of additional length of life and quality of health (not to mention the immediately greater energy and mood) more than cover the costs.
To read more about the benefits of self-regulation, and how to achieve better self-control, see Roy Baumeister and John Tierney’s excellent book, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength (Penguin Books, 2012). Willpower is like a muscle: by exercising it, we strengthen it.
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