Who Cares About the Future? A Large-Scale Investigation into the Sociodemographic Predictors of Self- and Other-Oriented Future Concern

Future thinking is essential for personal and societal progress; yet, its sociodemographicpredictors remain understudied, and existing theories offer conflicting predictions on howsociodemographic factors may shape self- and other-oriented future concerns. Integrating datafrom three large-scale studies, this research examines the role of age, socioeconomic status(SES), political ideology, religiosity, and other demographics. Study 1 (54 datasets; N = 33,725U.S. participants) finds that political conservatism negatively predicts intergenerational concern,moral responsibility, and donations to future-benefiting causes, aligning with theories linkingconservatism to tradition and parochialism. In contrast, SES and religiosity positively predictboth self- and other-oriented future concerns. Study 2 (N = 2,496; three nationally representativeU.S. samples) replicates these patterns, while Study 3 (N = 1,517; Argentina, South Africa,Philippines) shows that SES and religiosity predict future concern globally, but political ideologydoes not. Across studies, age predicts greater future self-continuity, consistent with an amplifiedend-of-history illusion among older adults but does not increase other-oriented concern. Thesefindings provide a framework for understanding how sociodemographic factors shape futureorientedthought.