Having put forth the hypothesis that time perspectives affect opinions on housing and family life, the current study was conducted in order to determine the validity of that hypothesis in married or divorced individuals who had moved. A multi-group analysis by sex was used to develop a causal model that yielded the following findings:

 ・ When moving, looking to the future - thinking about one’s “living situation”→”future living space”→a home’s “basic specifications” - increased one’s satisfaction with one’s new housing. Looking to the past - i.e. thinking abour one’s “living situation”→”resuming life” - increased women’s satisfaction with new housing, while “basic specifications” increased men’s satisfaction.

 ・ “A couple’s dissatisfaction with the residence they were moving in to” had a negative effect on the happiness of both men and women.

 ・ An unbalanced family life encouraged divorce and reduced happiness while thinking about a new home’s “basic specifications” increased happiness.

 Views on life and issues with them are described below.

 Thinking about “living situations” involved 2 aspects: “routine activities,” i.e. the flow and efficiency of household chores, and “living conditions,” i.e. noise, dust, and odors. In other words, this means thinking about everyday life (in the near future) soon after moving. This approach touched on questions related to household chores, but it did not affect the “balance with family life,” so it was not reflected in actual life. Thus, this approach needs to be analyzed anew in terms of a family’s help with and views on household chores.

 Thinking about “future living space” had but indirect effect on opinions on housing.

 Thinking about “resuming life” reduced thoughts of divorce, albeit only slightly. Thus, a continuity of life from one’s previous residence helped to limit thoughts of divorce.

 Thinking about “basic specifications” had a major direct effect on opinions on housing. Couples were asked about aspects such as rent, the purchase price of a home, its quality and size, etc. led to their final housing choice.

 In short, thoughts about “living situations [the immediate future]” affected thoughts about one’s “future living space [the future]” and “resuming life [the past]” and ultimately affected thoughts about “basic specifications.”

 This time perspective on life affected one’s opinions on housing.

 In more concrete language, these perspectives presage future changes, i.e. “Is one satisfied with a residence; can a home make one happy?” [effectiveness] and “Can a balance with family life be achieved?” Envisioning those changes should prepare a couple for family life.

 Plans are to analyze the relationship between whether or not a couple has children and the effects of changes in a spouse’s work patterns and housing from the perspective of work-life balance in a subsequent study.