Research has shown that as many as 40% of students face problems due to procrastination, with 50% systematically procrastinating. But contrary to popular belief, the reason is not laziness.
Not putting off for tomorrow what you could (and maybe should) do today is all well and good. Until it isn’t. And research suggests that you know that feeling especially well if you are a student [1]. Anything seems better than starting that assignment, or writing that thesis: deciding now is the time to clean your entire place, scrolling through social media, because suddenly everything you can do online is just so much more enticing (like that Buzzfeed quiz for what type of pasta you are), getting hooked on that new series…
It happens: you procrastinate. And you may just shrug and say that is how you have always done things. Or you may feel so bad after that all-nighter that you swear you will finally change. And then you don’t.
Why?
People usually say that you procrastinate because you are lazy, preferring to binge-watch Netflix to working to be productive and accomplished. Or they say it’s because you don’t know to set priorities, and so waste time on other tasks (like that Buzzfeed quiz).
The truth, however, is that procrastination has deeper causes. New York Time columnist Charlotte Lieberman cites Professor of Psychology Piers Steel as saying that procrastination is a way of self-harm, or self-sabotage [2]. You know it will have negative consequences for your future self, and yet you do it anyway. We procrastinate to feel better, but instead we end up causing ourselves more distress and problems. In this sense, procrastination seems like irrational behaviour.
But it is not irrational at all.
First, it makes evolutionary sense. Hal Hershfield, Professor of Marketing at U.C.L.A, says that we tend to think of our “future selves” not as continuations of us, but as strangers [3]. So the decisions we make for them can be like decisions we would make for other people: that the work you are putting off today really seems like it’s not your problem anymore.
Secondly, it is nothing more than a simple coping mechanism – with a big Catch-22. Dr Fuschia Sirois, who specialises in Health Psychology, says that people procrastinate when they are unable to healthily cope with negative emotions around a task [4]. These negative emotions precede procrastination and are called “procrastinatory cognitions”. They arise when we face difficulties with a challenging or aversive task, and consist of distressing, ruminating negative thoughts, accompanied by self-blame, self-depreciation and criticism. Procrastination gives the illusion that you have dealt with these negative emotions by avoiding the task that causes them. In this way, it offers short-term relief. Soon, people who procrastinate feel bad about doing it, having strong feelings of guilt, shame, or anxiety. The catch is that this only makes them procrastinate more. Why? Some researchers suggest that these negative thoughts and emotions are seen as the lesser of two evils by procrastinators: better that, than the vulnerability of doing the task and essentially giving up control on how things turn out [5].
If procrastination is the result of a difficulty to regulate emotions, it should come as no surprise that research confirms that people with depression are more likely to procrastinate [6]. Difficulty to regulate emotions and deal easily and healthily with negative thoughts increases when an individual has poor overall mental health.
This also helps explain why students are particularly prone to procrastination. According to the developmental theory of Professor Jeffrey Arnett (Department of Psychology at Clark University, Massachusetts), the years most usually corresponding with University studies, 18 to 25 years old, make up an intensely challenging and transitional phase, called “early adulthood” [7]. Students have been identified multiple times as a high-risk group for developing psychological distress and mental health problems.
The question then is how do we deal with procrastination?
Essentially, we need to prioritise addressing poor mental health, and not expect quick fixes for time management or boosting productivity to be the answer alone. But that does not mean that tricks can’t help. Gretchen Rubin, author of “Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits.”, advises that we try to place obstacles to doing the things that tempt us to procrastinate [8]. For example, if you keep checking social media, delete the apps from your phone.
This works the other way around too: if you keep finding excuses for not doing something, remove all obstacles that keep you from getting to work on that task. If you have to write 1000 words for that thesis today, sit down to do it armed with water and snacks, have your phone already on silent and your laptop already plugged in, and anything you might need or want, and so use as an excuse to stop and procrastinate, already there within reach.
Professor Phil Race, author of “Practical Tips for Students”, suggests to use what tempts us to procrastinate (checking Twitter, watching a film, going out with a friend) as planned, scheduled rewards for completing what we set out to do each time. In this way, we will still enjoy all the other things that seem better than working, and also use them to get things done [9].
Being self-reflecting, kind, and forgiving with ourselves and learning to identify our feelings is also fundamental. The Advice Place, Chaplaincy and Student Counselling at the University can offer events, resources and support, and there are also free online resources of CBT techniques which offer guidance on how to deal with negative emotions and challenging tasks, as well as anxiety and depression.
The Advice Place – Support and advice
Student Counselling Service – self-help resources
Student Counselling Service – online courses and workbooks
Reference list
[1] Argiropoulou, M.I., Sofianopoulou, A. and Kalantzi-Azizi, A. (2016) ‘The Relation Between General Procrastination and Health Behaviors: What Can We Learn from Greek Students?’ in Sirois, F.M. and Pychyl, T.A. (eds.) Procrastination, Health, and Well-Being. London: Elsevier Inc., pp. 143–160.
[2] Lieberman, C. (2019) ‘Why You Procrastinate (It Has Nothing to Do With Self-Control).’ The New York Times, 25 Mar. 2019. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/25/smarter-living/why-you-procrastinate-it-has-nothing-to-do-with-self-control.html?searchResultPosition=1 (Accessed 5 September 2019).
[3] Hershfield, H.E. (2011) ‘Future Self‐Continuity: How Conceptions of the Future Self Transform Intertemporal Choice.’ Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 12351(1), pp. 30–43.
[4] Sirois, F.M. (2016) ‘Introduction: Conceptualizing the Relations of Procrastination to Health and Well-Being.’ in Sirois, F.M. and Pychyl, T.A. (eds.) Procrastination, Health, and Well-Being. London: Elsevier Inc., pp. 3–20.
[5] Burka, J.B. and Yuen, Y.M. (1983) Procrastination: Why you do it, what to do about it. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley.
[6] Kim, S., Fernandez, S. and Terrier, L. (2017) ‘Procrastination, Personality Traits, and Academic Performance: When Active and Passive Procrastination Tell a Different Story.’ Personality and Individual Differences, 108, pp. 154–157.
[7] Arnett, J.J. (2000) ‘Emerging adulthood: a theory of development from the late teens through the twenties.’ American Psychologist, 55, pp. 469-480.
[8] Rubin, G. (2016) Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits – to Sleep More, Quit Sugar, Procrastinate Less, and Generally Build a Happier Life. London: Two Roads.
[9] Race, P. (2003) How to Study: Practical Tips for Students. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
