The Spatial Representation of Self-Referential Negative Events

The left-to-right spatial representation of time is reflected in faster responses when past-related concepts are associated with the left side of space and future-related concepts with the right. Most research has examined this time–space congruency effect using general temporal concepts, leaving unclear whether it also characterizes personally relevant temporal contents. The present study investigated whether the time–space congruency effect extends to self-referential negative events referring to the past and the future, and whether its expression is related to individual differences in maladaptive negative thinking. Forty-seven adults categorized individually generated words referring to past or future negative personal events, as well as neutral temporal words, by making left- or right-hand responses. A significant time–space congruency effect was observed for both self-referential and neutral words. The congruency effect was numerically smaller for self-referential words, and its strength was significantly and inversely related to anxiety sensitivity, whereas no such association was found for neutral words. These findings extend the mental timeline account to personally relevant negative events and provide initial evidence that individual differences in anxiety sensitivity are related to the spatial representation of such events. Psychological distance may represent a plausible mechanism underlying this association, a possibility that warrants direct testing in future research.