“Time Horizon” is the distance into the future that a person plans.
For example, if you are 40 years old and you are saving for retirement, you have a time horizon of at least 25 years.
Research has discovered many experiences that “shrink” a person’s time horizon:
- Illness
- Imprisonment
- Addiction
- Unemployment
- Social Exclusion
- Poverty
- Homelessness
Consider the first item on that list – illness.
It makes sense that someone who is diagnosed with a terminal illness will stop planning for the long term.
The last two items on that list, poverty and homelessness, interest me the most.
Homelessness and Time Horizon
Research shows that a person’s “Time Horizon” shrinks the longer the person is homeless.
It would appear that eventually a person’s time horizon shrinks to 24 hours.
Future = Tomorrow
This makes sense if you consider the need to secure food and somewhere to sleep every day.
It is hard to focus on retirement when you haven’t eaten in days and you aren’t sure where you are going to sleep on a winter night.
It is VERY logical.
Unfortunately, it also leads to decision-making that keeps a person trapped in homelessness.
Getting out of homelessness requires a lot of long-term planning: securing income, housing, etc.
There are several factors that “trap” people in homelessness, but this is one of the biggest.
How this Impacts You
If you work with homeless folks in any capacity, their shorter time horizon WILL impact how you do your job.
Someone with a 24-hour time horizon:
- Misses more appointments, especially those that are scheduled far in to the future.
- Misses more deadlines (e.g. paperwork, overdue library books, etc.)
I point this out for two reasons:
First, you should have realistic expectations.
Second, you will often have to “assist” someone to have a longer time-horizon. This is particularly true if you are a case manager or counselor.
Have a great day!
Peace,
Ryan
Sources:
- Fieulaine, N., & Apostolidis, T. (2015). Precariousness as a time horizon: How poverty and social insecurity shape individuals’ time perspectives. In M. Stolarski, N. Fieulaine, & W. van Beek (Eds.), Time perspective theory; Review, research and application: Essays in honor of Philip G. Zimbardo (pp. 213–228). Springer International Publishing/Springer Nature.
- M. Stolarski et al. (eds.), Time Perspective Theory; Review, Research and Application: Essays in Honor of Philip G. Zimbardo, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-07368-2_14.
- Van Doorn, L. (2010). Perceptions of Time and Space of (Formerly) Homeless People. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 20(2), 218–238.
