Exploring time appropriation: development and validation of the time appropriation scale

Abstract Appropriation involves rendering foreign and uncontrollable elements familiar and meaningful. This study introduces the novel concept of time appropriation, defined as transforming uncontrollable temporal segments into personally meaningful experiences and allocation of that temporal segment to oneself. We investigate this concept through three distinct studies. In Study 1, a qualitative study involving 15 participants, we used in-depth interviews to explore the intricacies and dimensions of time appropriation, identifying themes that emerged from participants’ descriptions via template analysis. Template analysis enables the identification of recurring patterns within and across participants, providing a flexible yet structured approach. Studies 2 and 3, with 371 and 988 participants respectively, focus on developing and validating a measurement tool for this concept, by survey methods to collect quantitative data ensuring statistical reliability and validity. Qualitative findings from Study 1 reveal that time appropriation encompasses dimensions such as identification, meaning, emotion, ownership, transformativeness, sociability, and the physical environment. Participants strongly identify with and find unique meanings in their appropriated time, generally experiencing positive emotions. However, emotional experiences varied among participants; while many reported positive emotions like satisfaction and contentment, a few described more complex feelings, suggesting that the emotional impact of time appropriation may not be uniformly positive but rather context dependent. Our participants exhibit high ownership and control, using these periods for psychological renewal and transformation within specific social and physical environments characterized by comfort and strong bonds. Quantitative results from Studies 2 and 3 demonstrate the successful development of the time appropriation scale, which includes key dimensions such as self-discipline, spontaneity, and inwardness. To ensure the scale’s reliability and validity, we applied factor analysis to identify the underlying structure and utilized Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega to establish internal consistency. Self-regulation, the satisfaction with life scale, Turkish subjective happiness scale, authenticity scale, and the meaning in life questionnaire were used in validity studies. The scale exhibits robust psychometric properties, confirming its validity and reliability. This research highlights the distinctiveness of time appropriation compared to other time-related concepts in the literature, such as time work, leisure, and time perspective. While the findings underscore the utility of the time appropriation scale, some limitations, such as the use of snowball sampling techniques as well as criterion sampling in the first study, the reliance on self-reported data in the second and third studies and the need to examine diverse cultural contexts should also be addressed. We discuss the theoretical implications, psychometric properties, and potential applications of the time appropriation scale.