I’ll Do It Later
The science behind procrastination and what you can do to stop it
Procrastination is a phenomenon faced by most students, whether it be for a minor project, studying for a test, or finishing up mundane daily homework.
But what exactly IS procrastination? In this article, we seek out the deeper truth, to find the science behind procrastination, how students view this phenomenon, and specifically how it affects our lives as students. Hopefully, (and luckily), there are methods to deal with it!
What is Procrastination?
Psychologists have identified various drivers of procrastination, from low self-confidence to anxiety, a lack of structure, and, simply, an inability to motivate oneself to complete unpleasant tasks. Research has also shown that procrastination is closely linked to rumination, or becoming fixated on negative thoughts.
From this, we can see how procrastination is not due to one specific factor but is a culmination of a variety of complications in our daily life. When surveyed what students see procrastination as, Jaqueline, a University student remarks,
“To me, procrastination refers to the act of putting tasks or chores off until the very last minute, stemming from the lack of motivation to start or work on the task, or dreading the activity when there are other more enticing options to spend the time”
A further inspection into this reveals that procrastination isn’t a unique character flaw or a mysterious curse on your ability to manage time, but a way of coping with challenging emotions and negative moods induced by certain tasks — boredom, anxiety, insecurity, frustration, resentment, self-doubt and beyond.
“Procrastination is an emotion regulation problem, not a time management problem,” said Dr. Tim Pychyl, professor of psychology and member of the Procrastination Research Group at Carleton University in Ottawa.
This misconception may just be what some of us students mistake procrastination for, Elio, a JC student comments,
“Procrastination is putting something off and leaving it until the last minute due to ill-discipline.”
This thought process might lead one to find fault in themselves, resulting in further negative thoughts about themselves, causing a terribly vicious cycle of procrastination.
Procrastination in our student lives
In an Instagram story, we polled:
The poll provided a hypothetical instance, familiar to all students, a project due in a month. The survey had 249 respondents, with the average result shown in the above diagram, with most students beginning work on it halfway through the assignment.
This doesn’t provide conclusive evidence towards procrastination being 100% responsible for this result, however, it does showcase that majority of the student population would not start work the day it is given. With half the original time to complete the assignment, accounting for procrastination, it could result in slipshod work, cause stress and anxiety, and potentially compromise sleep by burning the midnight oil.
How exactly DOES procrastination manifest? Responses ranged from playing games with friends, to sitting on social media like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. The focus of such activities would ultimately be taking their minds off the task at hand.
Through personal statements, we glean better insights into the worse instances of procrastination in school. Araya, a Polytechnic student, mentions.
“I started (the assignment) at least 1 week before (it was due) and rushed to complete it. I had a lot of assignments piling up which caused a backlog. As it was the end of the months, I was also juggling group projects, which I had to deal with first, resulting in me handing it up 2 weeks late. I got a D for that assignment.”
The snowball intensification is visible in this personal account, where Araya copes with mounting pressure from projects piling up, eventually causing her grades to be affected. Realistically, a student would certainly not only face one assignment at a time, showcasing the importance of keeping one’s cool under the pressure of countless incoming tasks, lest they falter due to procrastination, further delaying the completion and alleviation of stress.
Jacqueline recounts her experience.
“My worst instance of procrastination in both JC and Uni would have to be studying for exams, often letting advice to start early fall on deaf ears and as a result severely underestimating the amount of content and work required to be covered over a short period of time. This often led to burnout as the work continued to pile, further perpetuating the endless cycle of procrastination and lacking the motivation to do work”
Tests and examinations are part and parcel of getting students to recollect their knowledge to evaluate and apply said knowledge to complex questions. With ample preparation, the stress of these hurdles can be significantly reduced. Unfortunately, for the case of Jacqueline, which I wholeheartedly empathise with, underestimating the sheer volume of content required in the tests, resulting in a slippery slope towards burnout, procrastination, and well, lower grades.
How to Avoid Procrastination
Thankfully, procrastination has been around for the longest of times, giving rise to different measures to combat this common threat to productivity. Below are a few tips and tricks to help combat procrastination.
Firstly, one recommended way would be to reward good behaviour or positive reinforcement.
“Establish a reward if — and only if — you do what you set out to do. Do not let yourself binge that new Netflix show, check your social media, or get lunch until you complete what you’ve scheduled. So instead of using these tasks and distractions to procrastinate, make them contingent on you actually finishing what you schedule yourself to do.”
By setting rewards as an end goal, having multiple milestones to reach as constant motivation can further propel one towards completing their tasks in a more timely fashion. Constant motivation with the end goal of doing something one enjoys can reduce procrastination by establishing a concrete link between tasks and positive feelings from completion and rewards.
Another recommendation is being realistic, giving yourself more leeway, and acknowledging your human nature.
“As you establish your schedule, set yourself up for success. Projects often take much longer than expected, so bake in some extra time. And look for ways to make it easier on yourself: If, for example, you are not a morning person, don’t expect yourself to get up an hour early to start the exercise program you have put off for months. It might be better to schedule that activity during lunch or before dinner.”
As simple a method as this, it easily slips out of our thoughts, seen in the case of Jaqueline, with the expectations of others and yourself, we often overestimate our abilities. This results in a backlog from our assumptions of ourselves to work at 100% efficiency, failing to account for the eventual fatigue and potential burnout.
This method was employed by Jaqueline as a student,
“I have tried managing my procrastination issues by adapting an hourly planner approach and scheduling my days into 4 parts to plan my study schedule and other commitments.“
She acknowledges the fluctuating nature of motivation, and suggests an alternative to maintain productivity, stating:
“One thing I would like to work more on is to develop healthy habits and routines as well as setting goals to work towards instead of solely relying on motivation, as motivation is volatile and such practices are not sustainable.”
In conclusion, procrastination is a wide-scale phenomenon faced by students, but by denouncing the misconception of procrastination being a poor grasp of time management and is instead a coping mechanism to bad vibes, one can better work around it. With the rise in awareness about the importance of mental wellbeing in Singapore, there are newer ways for us to combat procrastination, with the help of others and on our own!
