The Mediating Role of Time Perspective in Socio-economic Inequalities in Smoking and Physical Activity in Older English Adults

Abstract

Socio-economic variations in health behaviours contribute to socio-economic inequalities in health. Time perspective describes how individuals’ consideration of future outcomes influences their present day behaviours and is associated with health behaviours and socio-economic position. Although theoretically plausible, the potential mediating role of time perspective in socio-economic inequalities in health behaviours has received little research attention. Analysis of data from wave 1 of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing revealed that time perspective played a small partial mediating role in socioeconomic inequalities in smoking and physical activity. The data were self-report and cross-sectional, and the sample restricted to individuals aged 50+.