The relation between time perspective and posttraumatic stress symptoms: The mediating role of traffic locus of control

A limited number of studies have assessed the relation between time perspective and posttraumatic stress symptoms. The first aim of this present study is to evaluate the relation between time perspective and posttraumatic stress symptoms in a sample of victims of road traffic crashes. Further, we explored the mediating role of traffic locus of control in the relation between time perspective and posttraumatic stress. A sample of 120 participants participated in this study (42.9% women, Mage = 29.15, SD = 11.91). The participants completed scales measuring time perspective, traffic locus of control, and posttraumatic stress symptoms in the last month. The results show that past negative, present fatalistic, present hedonistic time perspectives, and traffic locus of control are positively related to posttraumatic stress symptoms. Moreover, internal traffic locus of control mediated the relations between time perspectives and posttraumatic stress symptoms. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.