The literature on time, its perception, orientation, meaning, and in general relationship to the human experience is of voluminous magnitude. In Part I of this article, the concept of time was approached from a historical perspective, with emphasis on theoretical and clinical views regarding the nature, structure, and passage of time. Whenever permissible, implications of how time aligns with psychosocial adaptation to chronic illness and disability (CID) were suggested. Part I concluded with a review of how time is conceptualized and integrated within the boundaries of several of the leading personality theories and psychotherapeutic models. When appropriate, referencing pertinent literature from the field of adaptation to CID was attempted.In Part II of this article, the discussion decidedly swings toward the field of rehabilitation with particular attention to the theoretical underpinnings and empirical findings that directly address psychosocial adaptation to CID. Accordingly, in this part, the discussion focuses on (a) briefly reviewing time and death, as the latter has been linked, albeit most symbolically, through the paths of loss, grief, and threat to life, to the onset of various types of CID; (b) time orientation/ perception within the context of psychiatric disabilities, namely, anxiety, mood disorders, psychotic impairments, and antisocial personality disorders; (c) the relevant empirical literature on the relationships between time orientation/ perception and psychosocial adaptation to CID; and (d) those treatment modalities that could be beneficial for individuals whose CID results in time distortions.
Time and DeathOver half a century ago, Heidegger posited that the inevitability of death lays the foundation to how humans perceive and experience time.
AbstractThe first part of this article focused on providing the reader with a general overview of the concept of time with special emphasis on understanding time's role in the structure of personality theories and their associated therapeutic approaches, as well as linking the discussion to the understanding of time in the context of psychosocial adaptation to chronic illnesses and disabilities (CIDs). In the second part of this article, the author seeks to (a) briefly comment on the association among death, disability, and time; (b) discuss findings from the clinical and empirical literatures regarding time perception/ orientation within the context of psychiatric disabilities; (c) review findings on the relationships between time perception/ orientation and psychosocial adaptation to CIDs; and (d) highlight those treatment modalities that have been suggested for individuals whose disabilities have resulted in time distortions.