Procrastination

Procrastination is commonly framed as an irrational tendency to delay required tasks or assignments despite the negative effects of this postponement to an individual.

Procrastination can affect a person’s mood, their self-belief and their self-esteem.

Research states that procrastination can originate from several factors, including lack of conscientiousness associated with competence, order, dutifulness, achievement-striving, self-discipline, deliberation, and also neuroticism (core personality trait characterized by emotional instability, irritability, anxiety, self-doubt, depression, and other negative feeling). Impulsiveness also has some association with procrastination.

For chronic procrastination, acceptance-based therapies are the most evidence-based intervention.

Accepting that it is uncomfortable in performing a task but realising that this is only a thought and not the reality of the task. Other interventions to foster acceptance include:

• Self-compassion meditations
• Emotion exposure
• Physicalizing emotions or thoughts
• Loving-kindness phrases
• Experiential exercises and metaphors

Regarding academic procrastination, rational beliefs and their role in mediating procrastination, life satisfaction, and performance is a good intervention when looking at procrastination in academic and professional work.

One’s beliefs about events lead to emotional and behavioural reactivity (I failed the module)

In response to failure, maltreatment, and misfortune, people can react with either healthy or unhealthy emotional and behavioural responses (I can’t finish this course)

The client is asked to consider whether there is any evidence for their belief, whether it is logical or consistent with reality, and whether the belief is helpful.

Once the irrational belief has been disputed, a rational alternate belief is constructed in collaboration between client and practitioner, a new effective belief is formed. (I will use my corrections to pass my course)