Participant self-selection biases as a function of individual differences in time perspective

Individual differences in time perspective were predicted to determine when students sign-up for studies and how faithfully they meet the time obligations of research. As predicted, future-oriented students initiated and completed their research participation sooner than did present-oriented students, and females signed up sooner than did males. The additive effects of time perspective,and gender strongly predicted sign-ups, with female futures signing up earliest and male presents signing up latest (Study 1). Time perspective styles also predicted participation in longitudinal research. Present-oriented students met time commitments of a multi-session diary study less reliably than did future-oriented students (Study 2). These results have implications for both research design and for daily coping.