Memories of the approximal future: evidence for mental simulations of imminent threat across the lifespan

Researchers have recently demonstrated that people tend to experience spontaneous mental simulations of what might happen next - i.e., the approximal future - and that such simulations are especially likely to focus on possible negative outcomes in relation to sources of perceived threat in the surrounding environment. The purpose of the two studies (N = 318) reported in this manuscript was to better characterise the generalizability of simulations of the approximal future across the lifespan. Participants were asked to report memories of approximal simulations of the future and to indicate whether the events they reported were triggered by any relevant past experiences. Across both studies, we found consistent evidence that people, irrespective of age, remember simulations of the approximal future that are disproportionately characterised by negative as opposed to positive valence, and that these memories tend to be remembered as being triggered by some relevant personal, vicarious, or media event. These findings suggest that mental simulation and memory work flexibility to support threat detection.