Differences in the Temporal Extension of Self-Continuity Over the Course of the COVID-19 Pandemic

This study examined whether the average levels and the temporal extension of self-continuity varied over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Three demographically matched adult life-span samples (n = 223 each) were gathered in the U.S. in fall 2016, summer 2020, and winter 2022/23. Participants rated their self-continuity 1/5/10 years into the past and future. Multi-level analyses examined the effects of temporal distance, past/future direction, and assessment time while controlling for demographics. Average self-continuity did not vary across assessments, but the tendency to report lower self-continuity for more distant times was weaker during the pandemic, and the tendency to report lower self-continuity for past versus future was weaker during and after the pandemic. Discussion focuses on the role of slowed time perception during the pandemic and the possibility that mid- and post-pandemic reports of past self-continuity were elevated by nostalgic self-reflection, coupled with increased uncertainty about the future.