Year of Award
2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Type
Master of Arts (MA)
Degree Name
Clinical Psychology
Department or School/College
Department of Psychology
Committee Chair
Craig McFarland
Commitee Members
Stuart Hall, Erin Semmons
Keywords
Prospection, Future Imagery, Pre-experiencing, Meaning, Personal Values, Values Card Sort
Subject Categories
Clinical Psychology | Cognition and Perception
Abstract
Prospection involves imagining future events using mental representations. When people engage in positive, vivid, prospections they report “boosts” of mood, and higher rates of well-being. This study sought to cultivate positive affect in response to prospections by incorporating values into future imagery. Two groups imagined everyday future events in detail. One group additionally learned about values and linked these values to the everyday future events. We hypothesized that the values-based prospection would result in greater increases in mood, and that this increase would be mediated by additional access to details and phenomenological features. Contrary to hypotheses, there was no positive affect change in either group, and no between group differences related to condition. Preliminary analyses suggest other promising changes may have occurred as a result of the values condition. Future research will further examine the impact of this intervention, as well as the clinical utility of incorporating values into future imagery.
Recommended Citation
Gorter, Bethany Grace, "Enhancing the Emotional Impact of Prospections Via Personal Values" (2019). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 11470.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/11470
© Copyright 2019 Bethany Grace Gorter