Time perspective, future anxiety, and hope for success in individuals awaiting bariatric surgery

The paper focuses on the problems of temporal functioning of obese individuals and of individuals prepared for bariatric treatment. The experience of time heavily weighs on many areas of human functioning, everyday activity, planning and achieving goals, engaging in pro-health behaviours, and in consequence on the quality of life and on physical health. Contingent on numerous factors, obesity may be related to focusing on particular aspects of time perspective. The aim of the study was to determine the specificity of particular temporal dispositions in individuals prepared for bariatric surgery, and thus to devise suitable post-op psychological interventions.

The study sample comprised 28 individuals (60.7% women, mean age M = 43.82 years, SD = 10.01, mean BMI M = 44.83 kg/m², SD = 6.51) awaiting bariatric surgery. The data were collected individually with the following pen-and-paper questionnaires: the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory, the Dark Future Scale, and the Polish adaptation of Snyder's Adult Hope Scale, which is named the Hope for Success Questionnaire.

The results showed the prevalence of present hedonistic time perspective in the obese. With regard to future anxiety or the hope for success, no significant deviations from the general population were observed.

The results indicate that this group is in need of temporal psychotherapy aimed at balancing the time perspective. The results may also be interpreted through the lens of contextual determinants connected with task orientation preceding the surgery.