ArticleBMC psychology2026
Effects of future time perspective on depression in college students: the mediating role of emotional intelligence and moderating role of physical exercise.
Article in BMC psychology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Sense of purpose and perception of involution (Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
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3 authors.
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Abstract
objectiveThis study investigates how emotional intelligence mediates the link between future temporal orientation and depressive symptoms in university students and explores whether physical activity moderates this connection.
methodData were collected from 1,014 undergraduate students (490 males and 524 females) across three universities in Fujian Province, China, between 1 March and 5 July 2024. Participants were selected via random sampling and completed the Future Time Perspective Scale, Emotional Intelligence Scale, Physical Activity Rating Scale, and Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Statistical analyses included Pearson's correlation, linear regression, and moderated mediation analysis (PROCESS Model 7) using SPSS 22.0.
results(1) Future time perspective significantly and negatively predicted depression (β = -0.32, p < 0.001). (2) Emotional intelligence partially mediated the association between future time perspective and depression (indirect effect = -0.11, SE = 0.02, 95% CI [-0.15, -0.08]). (3) Physical exercise moderated the first-stage path of the mediation model (FTP → EI). Simple slope analyses showed that the FTP-EI association was significant at both low (M - 1 SD) and high (M + 1 SD) levels of physical exercise, but was stronger at high physical exercise (simple slope: β = 0.41, p < 0.01) than at low physical exercise (simple slope: β = 0.25, p < 0.01).
conclusionFuture time perspective influences depression both directly and indirectly through emotional intelligence. Additionally, physical exercise enhances the predictive effect of future time perspective on emotional intelligence, suggesting that active individuals exhibit a stronger link between future-oriented thinking and emotion regulation.
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