Research on Procrastination and Where it Comes From

Procrastinating is something most of us do or seen those close to us do. I’ve decided to dig deep in the research on procrastination and where it comes from.

In this article I discuss the following:

  • Where procrastination comes from
  • When procrastination becomes a problem
  • Causes of procrastination and
  • How to overcome procrastination

Research Behind Procrastination

Before we get into where procrastination comes from, we first have to understand what it is.

Procrastination is defined as self-defeating behavior that’s marked by short-term benefits and long-term costs.

Let’s say you decided to take on some of my earlier advice from an article Why Time Management Skills Are Important. You prioritize and make your list of what you’d like to have done by the end of the day etc. By the end of the day you notice something on the list that you still haven’t gotten to – 3rd day in a row.

Every day you tell yourself “I’ll get to it tomorrow”. Tomorrow comes and, nope, still not being done. You’re stuck with feelings of regret and being hard on yourself for continually delaying your task(s).

Where does it come from?

Cycle of Procrastination – Where does it come from?

According to a research study done by Joseph Ferrari and Juan Francisco Diaz-Morales, 20 – 25% of adults around the world are procrastinators. The study found that procrastinators have lower positive actions and expression of feelings or needs and assertiveness.

The researchers indicated that procrastination is associated with:

“…higher levels of stress and anxiety, weak impulse control, lack of persistence, lack of work discipline, lack of time management skill, and the inability to work methodically.”

Some correlations between procrastination and health-related goals, inability to regulate negative emotions and ego-depletion. This basically means the that they have a lack of self-control due to mental resources being depleted.

In essence, procrastination comes from issues linked to depression, poor self-esteem, anxiety and other mental health conditions. But these conditions can also be worsened due to procrastination.

By delaying tasks, we may feel regret, get stressed from being “behind” which can then lead to an increase in negative self-talk. It’s a vicious cycle.

When Does Procrastination Become a Problem?

The obvious marker of procrastination becoming a problem is when it has an overall negative impact on your daily activities and life.

I’ll use the example of cleaning your house. If you procrastinate cleaning you will end up more stressed and eventually become sick. This is not only due to the increase in stress and anxiety, but rather the uncleanliness of the house.

You end up running out of clean dishes, a dirty bathroom and eventually you won’t have friends or family over anymore.

It’s important to remember that procrastination and laziness is not the same. Procrastination is choosing to do something else instead of XYZ. Whereas laziness is simply the unwillingness to act or inactivity.

Basically, procrastination becomes a problem when:

  • There’s an increase in stress and illness
  • Negative consequences from procrastinating (excluding mental health and illness. These may include things like delinquent bills)
  • Increase in burdens placed on personal relationships
  • Resentment from personal relationships: friends, family, co-workers etc.

Why Procrastination is Good

We’ve looked at all the reasons why procrastination is bad. But, can it be good? Sounds crazy to think that some form of procrastination can hold benefits.

According to Maryville University procrastination holds some benefits. Some students reported that waiting until the last minute can increase creativity. Pressures on deadlines can lead to leaps of thought whereas a more traditional approach would not.

They also claim that it can teach people to manage delays. According to Frank Partnoy people who are faced with decisions should also assess how long they have to make it. Waiting until the last minute will teach them to manage delays and will lead to a happier life.

However, I don’t quite understand this viewpoint as stress can increase significantly leading up to the deadline. Making a hasted decision may lead to a poor, uninformed decision being made. Perhaps one of my readers can leave their ideas on this statement in the comments section below.

What Causes Procrastination

According to the psychology behind procrastination we fall under the assumption that projects won’t take as long to finish. This false sense of security leads us to believe that we still have plenty of time to finish a task or project.

We also fall into the belief that we have to feel motivated or inspired to work on a task or project. However, the reality is that this “right time” simply never comes along and we end of never completing the task.

Some of the main causes of procrastination include:

Present Bias

The present bias is a phenomenon which means that humans are more motivated by instant gratification than by delayed gratification.

We would rather do something else now that makes us feel better than doing a tedious job that will have greater rewards over time.

Depression

Depression often relates to feelings of hopelessness, lack of energy and helplessness. These can make it difficult to start and complete simple tasks.

Feelings of self-doubt can also have a major impact on your lack of action. You might start feeling insecure about your abilities due to not being able to figure out how to tackle a project.

How to Overcome Procrastination

How to overcome procrastination

Now that we know what causes procrastination and the psychology behind it, we can also overcome procrastination. But how?

First of all, setting the right goals. The main reason we set goals is to feel like we are working toward something which makes us feel fulfilled. Sometimes we fail to reach our goals, and that’s okay. Instead of seeing it as a fail, rather think of it as a learning process.

If you want to learn more on setting goals, please read my Guide on How to set Goals and Achieve Them (According to the Experts).

Secondly, we need to have time management skills. According to Tony Robbins, the #1 best-selling author of Unleashing the Giant Within, time management is having the ability to use your time effectively, being productive and thus accomplishing your daily tasks and goals.

To learn more on what time management is, what it’s not and some of the top tips on improving your time management skills, please read the following article: Why Time Management Skills are Important.

Finally, recognize when you’re procrastinating and figure out why you’re doing it. I’m a huge fan of M. Scott Peck and found that one of his clients had the inclination to avoid doing or put off doing certain tasks.

The solution was simple: do the sucky tasks first and leave the more interesting tasks for last. This will lead to an increase in productivity and doing the sucky task in less time. The reason, I believe, is because we want to get to the fun part as soon as possible!

But if you’re doing the fun stuff first it’s hard to finish with boring things. You’re on a high from doing something you love so why would you want to “get rid of” that feeling? Lead with the boring procrastination-type things and end with the fun stuff you enjoy doing.

Conclusion

Procrastination, not laziness, is delaying important tasks by rather focusing on more enjoyable, or easier tasks instead.

It can be due to underlying mental health issues, which should definitely be discuss with a therapist. It can also cause or worsen your mental health issues if not tackled ASAP.

You now have the tools to tackle your procrastination habits as according to researchers. Just remember to not be so hard on yourself and change your self-talk from negative to positive.

It’s always better to treat the root cause of a problem rather than the symptom.

155 thoughts on “Research on Procrastination and Where it Comes From”

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