Behavioral Correlates of the Pragmatic Prospection Scale
Pragmatic prospection is a form of constructive, future-focused thinking that helps one achieve desired outcomes and avoid undesired outcomes. This study sought to validate the Pragmatic Prospection Scale (PPS), an 18-item self-report measure of pragmatic prospection. A total of 557 Penn undergraduates completed a screener survey containing the PPS. Of these students, 70 high scorers and 49 low scorers completed the study. Participants responded to four prompts asking about their ideal future. Participants also rated the perceived difficulty of responding to these prompts. Finally, participants completed the Pragmatic Prospection Scale again and the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ), a measure of trait worry. As a negative form of future-focused thinking, worry should be distinct from pragmatic prospection.
We hypothesized that the high PPS group would write longer responses about their future than the low PPS group. We also hypothesized that, compared to the low PPS group, the high PPS group would find it easier to write about their future, use more achievement related words when writing about their future, and use fewer anxiety related words when writing about their future. Finally, we hypothesized that correlations of the PPS with the aforementioned variables would differ significantly from correlations of the PSWQ with IFT variables.
Our results showed that, contrary to our hypothesis, high PPS scorers did not write significantly longer responses about their desired future. However, high PPS scorers did find it easier to write about their desired future, used more achievement related words, and used fewer anxiety related words than low scorers. This suggests that pragmatic prospection may not influence how much individuals say about their futures, although it may influence what individuals say about their futures. Additionally, the correlation between PPS scores and use of anxiety related words was not significantly different from the correlation between PSWQ scores and use of anxiety related words. In contrast, the correlations of PPS scores with ease of responding and use of achievement related words were significantly different from the correlations of PSWQ scores with ease of responding and use of achievement related words. This provides evidence that the PPS measures a form of constructive future-focused thinking that is distinct from worry. Thus, the study supports the validity of the PPS.
Comments
Very interesting, Abby! Can…
Very interesting, Abby! Can you please expand upon how you know that "high pragmatic prospectors have previously thought about their future" or rather more precisely how you know they might have thought *more* about their futures than low scoring prospectors? And how this might influence their ease (or not) in writing about their futures? I can certainly imagine a scenario where individuals who have thought *less* about their futures might actually be more positive about them!
Hello! These are great…
Hello! These are great questions! Pragmatic prospection is a fairly new construct, so not a lot of research has been done yet. To my knowledge, there hasn't been any research demonstrating that high pragmatic prospectors do think about their futures more than other groups of people. However, based on pragmatic prospection theory, I would expect high pragmatic prospectors to think about their futures a lot. The Pragmatic Prospection Scale is a trait measure of pragmatic prospection, which also makes me believe that individuals who have high scores think a lot about their future.
If high pragmatic prospectors think a lot about their futures, it may increase the ease with which they can write about their futures. Because they've thought a lot about their futures, they likely know what they'd want to write about. This may contrast with individuals who don't think about the future very much and need to consider what they want before writing. It also may be easier for high pragmatic prospectors to write about their future than high worriers. Like high pragmatic prospectors, high worriers may think a lot about their futures. However, high worriers may find it more difficult to write about their desired futures because they have a more negative view of it, and thus find the process more stressful.
I do think it's possible that individuals who think less about their futures and aren't high pragmatic prospectors (or high worriers) could be more positive about them. The first stage of pragmatic prospection involves optimistically envisioning the future, while the second stage involves making a plan and considering of obstacles. Some individuals who aren't high in pragmatic prospection overall may be good at the first stage and so be more positive about the future.