Past Perfect, Future Tense? A Replication and Extension of Temporal Comparison Effects on System Justification in Germany

Abstract: Temporal reference frames may shape how individuals evaluate political systems. Replicating and extending previous findings from the United States in a German sample, we experimentally manipulated temporal comparisons by asking N = 605 participants to evaluate the system in comparison to the past, the future, or no temporal frame. Comparisons with the past reversed a positive association between conservatism and system justification, whereas no significant association emerged when participants compared the present with the future. We further identified collective nostalgia as an important factor in system evaluations, showing a negative association with system justification in both the control and the past-comparison conditions. Our findings shed light on how conservatism and collective nostalgia jointly shape system evaluations across temporal frames.