抄録
Using 41 modifiers expressing future time in daily life, structural differentiation of psychological future time was examined. The modifiers, mainly adverbs, were selected from a Japanese dictionary based on some criteria. The subjects, 407 male and female college students, were asked to estimate the length of time for each modifier and also to make a short statement including each modifier. The results indicated that the modifiers had a uni-dimensional structure corresponding to the order of six kinds of time units. Short statements were classified into one of four categories, i.e., activity, expectancy, hope and prospect, with some criteria. It was found that they were matched well with the characteristics of the modifiers. Based upon these findings, a future time differentiation model was proposed.
