phd in procrastination

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The Procrastinator's Guide to a PhD: How to overcome procrastination and complete your dissertation

Procrastinating is an occupational hazard of doing a PhD. But what if you already have procrastination issues? It’s one thing to start as a well-organised, diligent student and then lapse when faced with the lack of deadlines and accountability. It’s another to have been flying by the seat of your pants for the last several years, pulling all-nighters to finish assignments and cramming for exams. What to do? As a recovering procrastinator myself, with several decades of bad habits to overcome, I want to reassure you that change is possible! You can use your well-honed skill in mind games for good instead of evil. The happy news is that if you’ve made it this far, you’ve got all the brains you need to succeed—you just have to know what to do with them. At the end of the day, it’s perseverance, not brilliance, that will get you to your goal. Whether you have long dabbled in the dark art of procrastination or you’re a relative newcomer, you’ll find something here to help you achieve your PhD. Note: The focus of this book is on the thesis or dissertation, not on the coursework and qualifying exams which are part of doctoral studies in the USA.

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How to Stop Procrastinating

• Alice Boyes

Seven strategies backed by science

Do you keep postponing work you need to do? The problem probably stems from one of three things: your habits and systems (or lack thereof), your desire to avoid negative emotions (like anxiety and boredom), or your own flawed thinking patterns (which can make a task seem harder than it is). Luckily, there are simple strategies for managing each.

To develop good habits, for instance, do your important work in a consistent pattern daily: After I do this, I do my deep work. Devise a system for starting new tasks (drawing on one you’ve handled well); that will make it easier to get the ball rolling. When a task makes you anxious, do the easiest part first and progress from there; motivate yourself to do a boring task with a reward for completing it. And if you’re cognitively blocked, consider what would make a task impossible—and then identify its opposite.

Novel work often is filled with friction. You must recognize that tension doesn’t mean you’re not making progress. And if a project still feels overwhelming, tackle it in small chunks of time, not big ones.

Most of us procrastinate . We feel guilty about it and criticize ourselves for it. And yet we still do it. Why? Because of at least three factors: the absence of good habits and systems (poor discipline), intolerance for particular emotions (like anxiety or boredom), and our own flawed thinking patterns.

• Alice Boyes , PhD is a former clinical psychologist turned writer and the author of The Healthy Mind Toolkit , The Anxiety Toolkit , and Stress-Free Productivity .

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How to Stop Procrastinating: A Guide for PhD Students and Academics

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Jayron Habibe

A finishing PhD students in Medical Biochemistry. He has a love for writing about practical tools that make life as a PhD student just a little bit easier. Learn more about Jayron

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🧠Introduction

As a PhD student or academic, you are well aware of the unique challenges that come with managing research projects and meeting deadlines. However, one common hurdle that can hinder your progress is the tendency to start procrastinating.

You may find yourself putting off important tasks, succumbing to distractions, and struggling to make the most of your time. But fear not! This comprehensive guide is specifically designed to help PhD students and academics like you overcome procrastination and maximize productivity.

In the world of academia, productivity is not just a buzzword; it is essential for achieving research goals, making significant contributions to your field, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance . By adopting effective strategies and implementing practical techniques, you can break free from the cycle of procrastination and optimize your productivity, ultimately leading to greater success and personal fulfillment.

Throughout this guide, we will explore a range of proven strategies tailored to the unique needs of PhD students and academics. You will discover how to create a daily to-do list that encompasses research tasks, deadlines, and academic responsibilities. We’ll delve into the power of time blocking and how it can help you allocate dedicated time for research, writing, teaching, and personal development. You’ll also learn how to find your optimal working style, incorporating techniques such as deep work sessions, or collaborative sessions that resonate with your workflow.

Rewarding yourself for research and academic milestones is vital for maintaining motivation, so we’ll explore how to celebrate your achievements along the way. We’ll discuss the importance of minimizing context switching, avoiding distractions, and maintaining focus during crucial work sessions. 

By implementing the strategies outlined in this guide, you will not only overcome procrastination but also unlock your full potential as a PhD student or academic. The path to success is paved with intentional, focused, and productive work. Are you ready to stop procrastinating and embark on a journey of enhanced productivity? Let’s dive in and transform your research and academic experience.

🗒️Daily To-Do List for Researchers and Academics

A well-structured and thoughtfully crafted daily to-do list is a powerful tool for PhD students and academics. It provides a roadmap for your day, helping you stay organized, focused, and on track with your research and academic commitments.

It is important to create a to-do list that reflects your priorities and aligns with your long-term goals. Start by capturing all the tasks and responsibilities you need to address, including research activities, writing assignments, teaching duties, meetings, and administrative tasks. Be thorough in this process to ensure nothing falls through the cracks.

Another valuable tip is to break down larger tasks into smaller, actionable steps . This approach helps prevent overwhelm and allows you to make progress incrementally. For instance, if you have a research paper to write, break it down into phases like conducting literature reviews, collecting data, outlining, drafting, and revising. By tackling one step at a time, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment and stay motivated throughout the process.

Furthermore, assigning realistic time estimates to each task helps you allocate your time effectively and avoid over-committing. This practice ensures that you have a clear understanding of the time required for each task, preventing unnecessary stress and frustration.

Once you have your list of tasks, it’s crucial to prioritize them effectively. Here, you can use the concept of “ABC prioritization,” which involves categorizing tasks into three levels of importance: A, B, and C. A-tasks are high-priority and have a significant impact, B-tasks are important but less urgent, and C-tasks are those that can be deferred or delegated if possible.

To take your prioritization a step further, you can use the Eisenhower Matrix, a productivity framework that classifies tasks into four quadrants: important and urgent, important but not urgent, urgent but not important, and not important or urgent. This matrix helps you identify critical tasks that require immediate attention and separate them from tasks that can be scheduled or eliminated.

Lastly, review and update your to-do list regularly . Priorities may shift, deadlines may change, and new tasks may arise. By taking a few minutes at the beginning or end of each day to review and adjust your to-do list, you ensure that it remains relevant, up-to-date, and aligned with your overall goals.

If you’d like to use an app that makes creating to-do lists super easy I would recommend checking out Todoist . It has tons of awesome features while being extremely easy and simple to just get started with. It also happens to be my to-do list app of choice so if you’re interested just check it out.

⏳Time Blocking for Researchers and Academics

Time blocking is a powerful technique that allows PhD students and academics to optimize their productivity by allocating dedicated blocks of time for specific tasks or activities. By implementing this strategy, you can effectively manage your workload, reduce distractions, and make significant progress in your research and academic endeavors.

Time blocking involves dividing your day into distinct time slots, each dedicated to a specific task or type of activity. This structured approach helps create a sense of focus and clarity, enabling you to prioritize and complete tasks more efficiently. To make the most of time blocking, consider the following techniques:

Identify Your Key Priorities:

Before you begin time blocking, identify your most important priorities. These may include research activities, writing, data analysis, teaching responsibilities, meetings, or personal development. By having a clear understanding of your priorities, you can allocate sufficient time to each area.

Determine Optimal Time Slots

Consider your energy levels, cognitive peaks, and natural rhythms when determining your time slots. Some individuals are more productive in the morning, while others thrive in the afternoon or evening. Find the time slots that work best for you and align them with tasks that require deep focus and concentration.

Block Focus Time

Designate uninterrupted periods for deep work and focused tasks. During these time blocks, eliminate distractions, such as turning off notifications, closing unnecessary tabs, and creating a conducive work environment.

Include Breaks

Recognize the importance of breaks and transition time between tasks. Schedule short breaks to recharge and refresh your mind. Additionally, allocate buffer time between tasks to allow for a smooth transition and avoid feeling rushed or overwhelmed.

Flexibility

While time blocking provides structure, it’s essential to remain flexible. Unexpected events or new tasks may arise, requiring adjustments to your schedule. Embrace the flexibility to rearrange your time blocks when necessary, ensuring that you stay responsive to changing priorities.

Remember, the goal of time blocking is not to fill every minute of your day with tasks. It’s about creating a balance between focused work, breaks, and other essential activities. By allocating specific time slots for each task or responsibility, you gain clarity on your commitments and avoid the pitfalls of multitasking.

Additionally, time blocking can help manage the tendency to overcommit. By allocating realistic time slots for tasks, you gain a better understanding of how much you can accomplish within a given timeframe. This practice prevents the stress and frustration that can arise from unrealistic expectations and allows you to set achievable goals.

🛠️Discovering Your Optimal Working Style

Finding your optimal working style is crucial for enhancing productivity as a PhD student or academic. Each individual has unique preferences, strengths, and rhythms when it comes to work. By understanding and embracing your working style, you can tailor your approach to research and academic tasks, ultimately boosting your efficiency and output. Here are some key considerations to help you discover your optimal working style:

Experimentation

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different working styles and techniques. Try out various approaches such as the Pomodoro Technique, which involves working in focused sprints followed by short breaks, or deep work sessions where you dedicate uninterrupted time to intensive tasks. Evaluate the outcomes and determine what resonates with you the most.

Collaborative vs. Solitary Work

Consider whether you thrive in collaborative settings or if you perform better working independently. PhD students and academics often engage in team projects or research collaborations, but some tasks may require concentrated solitary work. Finding the right balance that suits your working style is essential for maintaining productivity.

Environmental Factors

Your physical work environment can have a significant impact on your productivity. Some individuals thrive in a quiet and organized space, while others prefer a bustling and interactive setting. Experiment with different environments, and create a workspace that promotes focus and minimizes distractions.

Workflow Tools

Explore productivity tools and technology that align with your working style. Digital tools like project management software, note-taking apps, or reference management systems can streamline your research process. Find tools that enhance your workflow and integrate seamlessly with your working preferences.

Remember, discovering your optimal working style is a continuous journey. As you progress through your academic career, your needs and preferences may evolve. Stay open to adapting and refining your approach to ensure it remains aligned with your goals and aspirations.

🍬 Rewarding Yourself While Working

Rewarding yourself while working can be a powerful motivator to overcome procrastination and maintain focus as a PhD student or academic. By incorporating intentional rewards into your work routine, you can create a positive reinforcement system that boosts your productivity and enhances your overall satisfaction. Here are some strategies to consider:

Milestone Celebrations

Break down your work into smaller milestones and celebrate each achievement along the way. For example, completing a section of a research paper, reaching a specific word count, or finishing a challenging experiment can all be acknowledged as milestones. Treat yourself to a small reward, such as a coffee break, a short walk, or a few minutes of enjoyable leisure activities.

Time-Based Rewards

Set specific time intervals during your work session, and reward yourself with short breaks or mini-rewards when you reach those intervals. This technique can be particularly effective when using the Pomodoro Technique, where you work for a set period, like 25 minutes, and then take a 5-minute break. Use these breaks to do something you enjoy, like reading a book, listening to music, or engaging in a brief mindfulness exercise.

Meaningful Incentives

Identify rewards that are personally meaningful and aligned with your interests or hobbies. This could be engaging in a favorite recreational activity, treating yourself to a delicious snack, or indulging in a leisurely activity you enjoy. The key is to choose rewards that bring you joy and provide a sense of rejuvenation and fulfillment.

Gamify Your Tasks

Turn your work into a game by setting up challenges or creating a points system. Assign point values to different tasks, and challenge yourself to accumulate a certain number of points within a specific timeframe. When you reach your goal, reward yourself with a prize or treat. This gamification approach adds an element of fun and excitement to your work, making it more engaging and enjoyable.

Social Accountability

Share your goals and progress with a trusted friend, colleague, or mentor. Establish a system of social accountability where you can celebrate your accomplishments together. This external validation and support can be a rewarding experience and provide an additional incentive to stay focused and productive.

Remember, the rewards you choose should be small, enjoyable, and in moderation. The purpose is to create positive associations with your work and maintain a healthy work-life balance. By incorporating rewards into your work routine, you can cultivate a positive mindset, boost your motivation, and reduce the likelihood of procrastination.

🕹️Avoiding Context Switching

Avoiding context-switching and cultivating mindfulness are essential practices for maximizing productivity and maintaining focus as a PhD student or academic. These strategies help minimize distractions, enhance concentration, and promote a sense of clarity and presence in your work. Here are some tips to minimize context switching:

Batch Similar Tasks

Group similar tasks together and allocate dedicated time blocks for them. For example, schedule a specific block of time for reading and responding to emails, another block for data analysis, and another for writing. By focusing on one type of task at a time, you reduce the need to constantly switch gears and maintain a higher level of efficiency.

Minimize Interruptions

Identify and eliminate sources of interruptions and distractions in your work environment. Silence or disable unnecessary notifications on your devices, inform colleagues or family members about your focused work time, and create boundaries to protect your uninterrupted work blocks.

Plan Transition Time

When switching between tasks or projects, allocate buffer time to mentally transition and prepare for the upcoming task. This allows you to wrap up one task effectively and transition smoothly to the next, minimizing the disruption to your focus and productivity.

🤯Conclusion

In the fast-paced world of academia, mastering productivity techniques is essential for PhD students and academics to thrive and achieve their goals. By implementing strategies such as creating a well-structured daily to-do list, practicing time blocking, finding what works for you, rewarding yourself while working, and avoiding context switching you can overcome procrastination, maintain focus, and maximize your productivity.

Remember, productivity is not a one-size-fits-all approach. It requires experimentation, self-reflection, and continuous refinement to find the strategies that work best for you as a PhD student or academic. Stay open to exploring new techniques and adapting your workflow as needed. The journey toward productivity is a personal one, and what works for others may not work the same for you.

As you apply these productivity principles, keep in mind the unique challenges and demands of being a PhD student or academic. Embrace your strengths, leverage your resources, and seek support from your peers, mentors, or productivity communities. Together, you can navigate the complexities of academic life and achieve remarkable results.

Ultimately, productivity is not just about getting more things done—it’s about creating a fulfilling and balanced academic experience. By optimizing your workflow, you can allocate time for your research, teaching, personal growth, and self-care. Remember to celebrate your accomplishments, maintain a healthy work-life balance, and prioritize your well-being along the way.

Now, armed with these productivity strategies and a commitment to action, it’s time to embark on your journey towards enhanced productivity as a PhD student or academic. Embrace the opportunities that lie ahead, stay focused on your goals, and make the most of your academic pursuits

Start by implementing one or two strategies from this blog, and gradually incorporate additional techniques into your routine. Remember, small steps can lead to significant improvements over time. Embrace the power of productivity and unleash your full potential as a successful PhD student or academic.

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Breaking the Cycle of Procrastination: Strategies for PhD Students to Stay Motivated and On Track

Introduction

Have you ever found yourself staring at the computer screen, knowing you should be working on your dissertation, yet somehow, you end up spiraling down a YouTube rabbit hole or cleaning your apartment for the fifth time this week? You're not alone. Procrastination is a common foe for many PhD students, acting as a significant barrier to academic success and personal well-being. But what if I told you that breaking free from this cycle is not only possible but can be the turning point in your academic journey? This blog post is your roadmap out of the procrastination trap, offering practical strategies and insights tailored for PhD students. Whether you're struggling with starting your literature review, data analysis, or writing your findings, read on to transform your approach and take control of your PhD journey.

Understanding Procrastination

The psychology behind procrastination.

Procrastination isn't merely a symptom of poor time management but a complex psychological behavior often rooted in anxiety, fear of failure, or a quest for perfection. For many, it serves as a defense mechanism to avoid negative emotions associated with daunting tasks. This understanding is pivotal for PhD students who face high-stakes projects that can trigger deep-seated fears. Recognizing that procrastination is more about managing emotions than managing time can be a liberating insight, paving the way for more effective coping strategies that address the root causes rather than just the symptoms.

Common Procrastination Triggers for PhD Students

PhD students are uniquely prone to procrastination due to the nature of their work, which involves long-term projects with high levels of uncertainty and frequent isolation. Identifying personal triggers—whether it's the fear of starting a complex analysis, the pressure to publish, or the overwhelming scope of writing a dissertation—can illuminate the path to tailored strategies that directly address these challenges. By understanding these triggers, students can begin to dismantle the barriers to their productivity, one step at a time.

Strategic Planning and Goal Setting

Breaking down your phd journey into manageable tasks.

The enormity of the PhD journey can paralyze even the most dedicated students. Breaking down this journey into smaller, manageable tasks can demystify the process and make each step feel more achievable. This strategy not only simplifies the workload but also provides clear, immediate goals that can boost motivation and satisfaction through regular accomplishments. Each small task completed is a step forward, reducing the overall anxiety and making the larger goal seem more attainable.

The Importance of Setting Realistic Deadlines

Realistic deadlines are crucial for maintaining momentum and focus. They create a sense of urgency, which can help combat the paralysis often caused by open-ended projects. By setting achievable deadlines, students can foster a routine of success and progress, building confidence and reducing the temptation to procrastinate. Moreover, these deadlines encourage regular reflection and adjustment, allowing students to stay aligned with their goals and adapt their strategies as needed.

Creating a Conducive Work Environment

Minimizing distractions and setting boundaries.

A conducive work environment is essential for sustained productivity. This means not only arranging a physical space that supports focused work but also setting clear boundaries with others to protect this space and time. Minimizing distractions—be it through noise-canceling headphones, a clutter-free desk, or digital tools that block access to social media—can significantly enhance one's ability to concentrate. Establishing and communicating these boundaries with peers and family members can further safeguard your productivity, ensuring that your dedicated work hours remain uninterrupted. For more insights on creating an effective work environment, explore the strategies outlined in " Overcoming Procrastination in Your Doctoral/PhD Dissertation Writing: Strategies for Success."

The Role of Technology in Combating Procrastination

Technology, often seen as a source of distraction, can also be a powerful ally in the fight against procrastination. Tools and apps designed to enhance focus, track time, and block distractions can transform your work habits. From project management software that keeps you organized and on track, to apps that limit your time on distracting websites, technology offers a range of solutions tailored to different needs and preferences. Leveraging these tools can help you create a more disciplined work routine, making it easier to stay on course. Discover how technology can aid in overcoming procrastination by listening to the "Overcoming Procrastination in Academic Writing" podcast.

Motivation and Self-Care

Building a support network.

A robust support network can be a lifeline during the PhD journey. Connecting with peers, mentors, and family members who understand and support your goals can provide both motivation and accountability. Whether it's through regular study groups, mentorship meetings, or simply sharing updates with loved ones, these connections can offer encouragement, advice, and a sense of community that combats the isolation and self-doubt that often accompany procrastination.

The Importance of Self-Care

Self-care is a critical, yet often overlooked, component of academic success. Regular breaks, physical exercise, and engaging in hobbies can significantly improve mental health and overall well-being. These activities provide necessary respite from the demands of academic work, helping to replenish energy levels and enhance focus. Recognizing self-care as a legitimate and essential part of your routine can prevent burnout and keep you more consistently productive in the long run.

Leveraging External Help

When to seek professional help.

There comes a point where external assistance may be the most effective strategy for overcoming procrastination. This could mean reaching out to academic advisors for guidance, utilizing writing centers for feedback on your work, or seeking professional services designed to support PhD students. Recognizing when you need help and taking the step to seek it out can be a game-changer, providing you with the resources and support needed to move past obstacles and maintain progress toward your goals.

How WritersER Can Assist in Your Academic Journey

WritersER is dedicated to helping PhD and doctoral candidates achieve their academic milestones within a six-month timeframe. Whether you're struggling with literature reviews, data analysis, or the writing process itself, WritersER offers tailored support to guide you through. Scheduling an admission interview with WritersER is not just about getting help with a specific project; it's about taking a decisive step towards academic success and reclaiming control over your academic journey.

Enhanced Time Management Techniques

The pomodoro technique: boosting productivity in short bursts.

The Pomodoro Technique, a time management method developed by Francesco Cirillo, is a proven strategy to enhance productivity and manage procrastination. It involves working in focused intervals, typically 25 minutes long, followed by a short break. This technique not only helps in maintaining high levels of concentration but also ensures regular rest periods, preventing burnout. For PhD students, this method can be particularly effective for tasks that require deep concentration, such as writing or data analysis. By breaking work into manageable intervals, the Pomodoro Technique can make daunting tasks seem more approachable and less intimidating.

Utilizing Time Blocking for PhD Tasks

Time blocking is a method where specific blocks of time are dedicated to individual tasks or types of work. This technique allows for a more organized and structured approach to managing the diverse responsibilities of a PhD student, from research and writing to teaching and personal development. By allocating specific times for each task, you can create a balanced schedule that accommodates both your academic and personal life, reducing the likelihood of procrastination due to overwhelm. Time blocking also encourages a disciplined approach to work, where each task receives focused attention, making it easier to progress steadily towards your goals.

Psychological Strategies to Overcome Procrastination

Reframing your mindset.

Changing how you perceive tasks can significantly impact your propensity to procrastinate. Viewing tasks as opportunities for learning and growth, rather than as burdens, can reduce anxiety and increase motivation. This shift in mindset can be particularly effective for PhD students, who often face complex and challenging projects. By reframing tasks as steps towards personal and professional development, the journey becomes more about growth and less about the pressure to perform perfectly. This perspective encourages a more positive approach to work, making it easier to start and sustain effort over time.

Overcoming the Perfectionism Trap

Perfectionism, while seemingly a positive trait, can be a significant barrier to productivity, leading to procrastination. The fear of not meeting high standards can prevent you from starting tasks, resulting in paralysis and stress. Overcoming this trap involves accepting that perfection is unattainable and that mistakes are part of the learning process. Setting realistic standards and focusing on progress rather than perfection can help alleviate the pressure that leads to procrastination. This approach not only reduces anxiety but also fosters a healthier, more productive work ethic.

Leveraging Technology and Tools

Project management apps for phd students.

Project management apps can be invaluable tools for PhD students, helping to organize tasks, deadlines, and priorities. Apps like Trello, Asana, and Microsoft Planner allow you to visualize your project in stages, set deadlines, and track progress. These tools can help demystify the PhD process, breaking it down into manageable parts and providing a clear sense of direction. By externalizing tasks and timelines, you can free up mental space for focused work, reducing the cognitive load and the tendency to procrastinate.

Distraction Blocking Software

Distraction blocking software can be a critical tool in minimizing procrastination. Apps like Freedom, Cold Turkey, and StayFocusd help limit your access to distracting websites and apps, allowing you to concentrate on your work. By creating a digital environment conducive to productivity, you can significantly reduce the temptation to stray from your tasks. For PhD students, who often rely on digital resources for research, these tools can be particularly effective in maintaining focus during work sessions.

Staying Motivated Through Community and Collaboration

Joining study groups and writing retreats.

Study groups and writing retreats offer structured environments for productivity and accountability. Joining a study group with fellow PhD students can provide mutual support and motivation, making it easier to tackle challenging tasks together. Writing retreats, whether organized informally with peers or through your institution, offer dedicated time and space for focused work, away from the usual distractions. These communal settings not only facilitate progress but also provide a sense of solidarity, helping to mitigate the isolation that can lead to procrastination.

Mentorship and Academic Coaching

Mentorship and academic coaching are invaluable resources for navigating the PhD journey. A mentor can offer guidance, support, and accountability, helping you to stay on track and focused on your goals. Academic coaches specialize in strategies for effective research, writing, and time management, offering personalized advice to overcome obstacles. These relationships can be a source of encouragement, providing external motivation and a clearer path forward, especially during challenging periods of the PhD process.

Physical and Mental Health Considerations

The importance of regular physical activity.

Regular physical activity is essential for maintaining mental and physical health, particularly during the stress-prone years of a PhD program. Exercise can reduce stress, improve mood, and increase mental clarity, making it easier to focus on your work. Incorporating activities like walking, running, or yoga into your daily routine can offer necessary breaks from the intensity of academic work, refreshing your mind and body. By prioritizing physical health, you can enhance overall productivity and reduce the likelihood of procrastination due to stress or fatigue.

Mindfulness and Stress Reduction Techniques

Mindfulness and stress reduction techniques can play a crucial role in managing the psychological triggers of procrastination. Practices such as meditation, deep breathing exercises, and mindfulness can help reduce anxiety, improve focus, and foster a more balanced emotional state. For PhD students, developing a mindfulness practice can offer a powerful tool for navigating the ups and downs of academic life, helping to maintain a sense of calm and purpose in the face of challenges.

Adapting to Changes and Setbacks

Flexible planning and adaptability.

The PhD journey is often unpredictable, with changes and setbacks being a normal part of the process. Developing flexibility in your planning and an adaptability mindset can help you navigate these challenges without losing momentum. This means being open to revising your goals and strategies as needed, learning from feedback, and finding alternative paths forward. By embracing adaptability, you can maintain resilience in the face of setbacks, turning potential obstacles into opportunities for growth.

Learning from Failure

Failure is an inevitable part of the learning process, especially in the context of a PhD. Rather than viewing setbacks as definitive losses, they can be seen as valuable learning experiences that contribute to your personal and academic development. Adopting a growth mindset, where failure is viewed as an opportunity to learn and improve, can help reduce the fear of making mistakes that often leads to procrastination. By reframing failure as a stepping stone rather than a stumbling block, you can maintain motivation and progress despite challenges. Additionally, here's a related YouTube video on How To Avoid Procrastination During Your Dissertation Writing Process. It could provide you a multi-faceted understanding of the topic.

Navigating the PhD journey requires overcoming the common hurdle of procrastination, a challenge that extends beyond mere time management to encompass psychological, environmental, and habitual dimensions. By adopting strategies such as enhanced time management techniques like the Pomodoro Technique and time blocking, addressing psychological factors through mindset reframing and combatting perfectionism, leveraging technology for organization and focus, and building a supportive community for motivation and accountability, students can significantly improve their productivity. Prioritizing physical and mental health through regular exercise and mindfulness practices, embracing flexibility, and viewing setbacks as learning opportunities are also crucial for maintaining momentum. Remember, the path to overcoming procrastination involves a multifaceted approach tailored to individual needs and challenges.

With the right mindset and tools, including seeking external support when necessary, such as services offered by WritersER, PhD students can break the cycle of procrastination, stay motivated, and progress confidently towards their academic milestones, turning every small step into a victory on their academic journey. Schedule a call with us at WritersER today and let's craft a roadmap to success tailored just for you. Click here to get started!

Procrastination and Science

Getting a phd in procrastination.

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4 thoughts on “ getting a phd in procrastination ”.

Any chance for those of us who didn’t read and apply concepts from your book in time to earn the prerequisite GPA being allowed into the program?

P.S. I’ve had The Procrastination Equation checked out of my local library for 6 weeks past the 2 automatic renewal periods, but opened and started reading it today. I may need to turn it in and check it out again to avoid the fines costing more than the book itself!

Usually they allow one PhD student for my entire department per year and we have to compete to see who gets it.

I’ll get back to you. Soon. I promise.

Interesting Read

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Procrastination

Is procrastination a coping mechanism or symptom, critically thinking about procrastination..

Posted April 30, 2024 | Reviewed by Abigail Fagan

• What Is Procrastination?
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I’ve noticed of late a trend in online conversations revolving around the concept of procrastination . Of course, this could just be ‘the algorithm’ feeding me such discourse given my relationship with psychology; but, regardless of ‘reach’, such discussion hasn’t been entirely accurate and may be potentially damaging to people who are genuinely working through things. The picture painted in such discourse is that procrastination isn’t laziness, rather a coping mechanism .

To begin, procrastination refers to the putting off of some task (i.e. usually something important and/or something that the individual doesn’t want to do) and, typically, replacing said task with other less urgent tasks that are easier or more enjoyable to the person conducting them. Consider, the adage: ‘what you want to do tomorrow, do today and what you want to do later, do now’. Being proactive is celebrated, procrastination is not: the population usually looks upon procrastination as less than socially desirable – a character flaw, in ways. In addition to laziness, it’s often coupled with stereotypes associated with lack of motivation , lack of self-regulation and perhaps even a lack of capability. In many cases, procrastination is a result of one of these (if not multiple). However, it is also important to recognise that procrastination can be a coping mechanism.

Sure, procrastination and laziness are two different things. However, it is very easy to be lazy and then rationalise this by telling people that you’re a procrastinator. Procrastination has become an excuse and a scapegoat in this context. As a result, when people say that they are a procrastinator, I often imagine that they’re either lazy (and trying to mask it as procrastination) or that they’re genuinely using it to cope with some form and level of anxiety (whether they are aware of it or not). Indeed, I’m familiar with symptoms of anxiety and its manifestation in different forms. I know some anxious people who immediately engage in a task so as to avoid another thing looming over their heads. They want to get it off their desks as quick as possible – the antithesis of procrastination. I also know people who are the exact opposite – a post-grad student with anxiety once showed me their email account after going AWOL for a few weeks and there were over 3,000 unopened emails. That’s real procrastination.

With that, most people I know would refer to themselves as procrastinators, to some extent. Of course, I work with a lot of students, so this should come as no surprise. Students typically have a penchant for leaving things they don’t want to do until the last minute (e.g. assignments and studying), because they’re often either off having fun or are genuinely stressed out by the college workload (i.e. perhaps not being used to as much work from their younger school days). That’s youth for you – particularly in the sense that their ability to self-regulate isn’t yet fully developed. As we addressed with respect to ‘laziness’ above, procrastination is also a common excuse/rationale for low self-regulation.

However, though it is the case that procrastination can be a coping mechanism (perhaps the term symptom might be warranted in some cases), that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good. You might say, well, it’s part of the process, or some derivation of this. If it’s an acute form of procrastination (i.e. short-term), then that’s reasonable (e.g. in light of a recent bereavement ). But, if the individual has a long history of procrastination, I’d wonder what they’re actually doing about it to better themselves (e.g. if they’re receiving treatment for their anxiety or whatever is the foundation for this coping mechanism). Blaming a coping mechanism for why you’re unable to take care of your business in a timely manner or do what you said you would isn’t a valid excuse if you’re not actively working on it – it just tells me you need a new coping mechanism.

Importantly, not all coping mechanisms are good – or adaptive. Many are maladaptive. For example, the development of a drinking problem is a classic example of a maladaptive coping mechanism. I would similarly categorise procrastination in this way – as a maladaptive coping mechanism. For example, if my boss landed me with a report on Monday that’s due Friday, I’m going to drop everything else that isn’t a priority and focus my attention on that report. Leaving it until Thursday night is a bad idea. Sure, you might get it done in time, but I’d question how much you were able to review, edit and amend said report upon its completion. If quality of the content is lacking or the report is late – and this is a regular occurrence – your boss is going to start looking for a replacement, regardless of your reason why. Sure, some people claim to work better under pressure (another rationalisation), but is that really tr ue ? Again, I’d question the sufficiency of time and effort to review, edit and amend, especially with the added pressure, stress and fatigue associated with leaving it until the last minute.

Playing devil’s advocate, it’s not entirely healthy to be so proactive that everything must be done immediately either (i.e. the aforementioned approach of getting it off your desk ASAP, so it doesn’t loom over your head). Depending on the context, such an approach is just as stressful as procrastination. There’s a happy medium between the two responses – aim to find the most appropriate time to complete the task in question, be it today, tomorrow, next week or in two months and organise it into your schedule . Making the plan to do it and sticking to said plan is both proactive and a sign of good organisation (an important disposition towards critical thinking ).

The point is that procrastination can indeed be a coping mechanism, but that doesn’t mean we should embrace it. Regardless of what you call it, procrastination remains largely maladaptive and can result in many adverse outcomes. Instead of resigning oneself to being a procrastinator – for whatever the rationale might be – it is important to make genuine efforts to cognitively reframe one’s approaches to undesirable tasks and be proactive. It will benefit the person and their mental well-being in the long run.

Christopher Dwyer, Ph.D., is a lecturer at the Technological University of the Shannon in Athlone, Ireland.

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Examining bedtime procrastination through the lens of academic stressors among undergraduate students: academic stressors including mediators of mobile phone addiction and active procrastination

• Published: 26 April 2024

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• Ran Zhuo   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0006-5947-160X 1  

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The present study investigated the indirect effects of active procrastination and mobile phone addiction on the relationship between academic workload and bedtime procrastination. A total of 474 Chinese undergraduates were recruited to complete assessments on academic workload, active procrastination, mobile phone addiction, and bedtime procrastination. The results revealed that academic workload not only directly impacts bedtime procrastination but also has an indirect influence through the mediating factors of active procrastination and mobile phone addiction. The sheer volume of work crowds out students’ time, destroying the procrastinator’s time structure centered around leisure and diminishing the enjoyment of tasks. Additionally, the stress of work also makes it easier for students to become addicted to mobile phones, leading them to use their sleep time to compensate for the time lost due to their workload. These findings shed light on the interaction between mobile phone addiction and the daily lives of college undergraduates, as well as how they mutually influence each other. The study underscores the importance of schools in alleviating the academic burden placed on students.

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Zhuo, R. Examining bedtime procrastination through the lens of academic stressors among undergraduate students: academic stressors including mediators of mobile phone addiction and active procrastination. Curr Psychol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-06038-w

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• Published: 23 April 2024

Relationship between academic procrastination, self-esteem, and moral intelligence among medical sciences students: a cross-sectional study

• Saeed Ghasempour   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-9875-9127 1 ,
• Aliasghar Babaei   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0004-7860-7280 1 ,
• Soheil Nouri   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0001-2899-5420 1 ,
• Mohammad Hasan Basirinezhad   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3672-556X 2 &
• Ali Abbasi   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0482-6208 3  

BMC Psychology volume  12 , Article number:  225 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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Academic procrastination is a widespread phenomenon among students. Therefore, evaluating the related factors has always been among the major concerns of educational system researchers. The present study aimed to determine the relationship of academic procrastination with self-esteem and moral intelligence in Shahroud University of Medical Sciences students.

This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 205 medical sciences students. Participants were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria using the convenience sampling technique. The data collection tools included a demographic information form, Solomon and Rothblum’s Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Lennick and Kiel’s Moral Intelligence Questionnaire, all of which were completed online. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential tests (multivariate linear regression with backward method) in SPSS software.

96.1% of participating students experienced moderate to severe levels of academic procrastination. Based on the results of the backward multivariate linear regression model, the variables in the model explained 27.7% of the variance of academic procrastination. Additionally, self-esteem ( P <  0.001, β= -0.942), grade point average ( P <  0.001, β= -2.383), and interest in the study field ( P =  0.006, β= -1.139) were reported as factors related to students’ academic procrastination.

According to the findings of this study, the majority of students suffer from high levels of academic procrastination. Furthermore, this problem was associated with low levels of self-esteem, grade point average, and interest in their field of study.

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Introduction

Investigating factors associated with students’ academic performance has always been the focus of researchers in the education system [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. One of these factors is academic procrastination, which is a common phenomenon among students [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]. This particular type of postponement refers to learners’ dominant and constant tendency to postpone academic tasks such that it affects their anticipated performance [ 6 ]. In general, two types of procrastination are observed in students’ homework. One type is purposeful, planned, and thoughtful postponement. For example, when students have to complete many assignments simultaneously, they prioritize some important assignments. Another type is irrational, self-defeating, and harmful postponement, which is known as academic procrastination [ 7 ]. Rothblum et al. (1986) propose two criteria in the definition and diagnoses of this problem: (a) tendency to always or almost always discard academic assignments and (b) always or almost always experiencing anxiety caused by such behavior. They emphasize that academic procrastination should include frequent postponement and considerable anxiety [ 8 ]. Research has shown that at least 70% of students are somehow involved in academic procrastination, and 50% always procrastinate in doing homework and learning course materials [ 9 , 10 ]. These figures redouble the need to evaluate academic procrastination and its related factors in this group.

Academic procrastination is a complex concept that depends on some factors. These factors are both affected by academic procrastination and can also decelerate its process. Therefore, it is essential to identify the underlying factors affecting students’ academic procrastination [ 11 ]. In addition, academic procrastination and related factors have not yet been well investigated and require more studies, especially among medical students [ 12 ].

Moreover, academic procrastination is associated with high levels of anxiety, depression, and feeling guilty in students and affects their self-esteem [ 13 , 14 , 15 ]. Self-esteem is considered among the factors affecting students’ academic procrastination in various studies [ 16 , 17 , 18 ]. Self-esteem refers to our perception of ourselves, how we evaluate ourselves, and our self-evaluation of ourselves as individuals [ 19 , 20 , 21 ]. Coopersmith (1990) considers self-esteem as people’s evaluation of their worth and usually maintains, indicating an attitude of approval or disapproval. In other words, self-esteem is a personal judgment of one’s worth, which refers to a person’s feelings about their worth in various areas of life [ 22 ]. As one of the major factors that moderate psychosocial pressure, this concept forms based on family relationships, academic success, body image, social interaction, and sense of self-worth. In this respect, the importance of these contexts changes depending on individual differences and one’s growth [ 23 ].

Moral intelligence is another factor affecting students’ academic procrastination [ 24 ]. Moral intelligence is the capacity and ability to understand good issues from bad issues [ 25 ]. Indeed, this intelligence enhances appropriate behavior and can provide stability in social life over time through qualities (e.g., honesty, responsibility, forgiveness, and sympathy) and reduce misbehaviors. Moral intelligence reflects the fact that a person is not born moral or immoral but must learn good performance, conscientiousness, and responsibility [ 26 ]. According to Lennick and Kiel (2007), moral intelligence includes four principles: honesty, responsibility, forgiveness, and sympathy. The honesty principle refers to harmonization between people’s beliefs and actions. The responsibility principle is the acceptance of actions and their consequences, as well as mistakes and failures. The forgiveness principle includes awareness of faults and mistakes and forgiving oneself and others. Finally, the sympathy principle means paying attention to others [ 27 ].

As previously mentioned, academic procrastination is a prevalent phenomenon among students. Determining the factors associated with it has captured the attention of many researchers in the education system. However, there are limited studies on the relationship between psychological variables, such as self-esteem and moral intelligence, with academic procrastination. It seems that understanding the relationship between them will lead to providing appropriate solutions and approaches to reduce this problem and improve students’ academic performance. Therefore, since no study has been conducted to determine the relationship between these variables, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between academic procrastination, self-esteem, and moral intelligence among medical sciences students.

Materials and methods

Study design and participants.

This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 205 Shahroud University of Medical Sciences students from April to September 2023. Participants were included in the study based on inclusion and exclusion criteria through the convenience sampling technique. This technique was chosen for its ease of implementation, high response rate to questionnaires, and frequent use in similar studies [ 28 ].

The inclusion criteria were studying at bachelor and professional doctorate levels (no history of studying in other universities) and having theoretical and practical courses. Besides, exclusion criteria were the history of suffering from serious mental illnesses (SMI) (such as Major Depression Disorder (MDD), Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder (BD), Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Post-Traumatic Stress (PTSD), and other related disorders), using neuropsychological drugs (e.g., antidepressants, antipsychotics, anti-anxiety, and mood stabilizers), and the recent occurrence of unfortunate events or stressful events in the past six months, which was self-reported by the student.

The sample size was estimated to be 205 students based on the study by Uma et al. (2020) [ 29 ]. This estimation took into account a power of 90% at a confidence level of 95%, as well as a 15% attrition rate.

α = 0.05 β = 0.10 r  = 0.24

Measurements

The data collection tool in this study consisted of four sections designed using the DigiSurvey system, a web-based questionnaire tool ( https://www.digisurvey.net/ ). The study objectives, along with the created link, were shared with students in their respective groups and channels on Telegram and WhatsApp social networks for them to complete in their free time.

Section 1. Demographic information form

Information related to gender, age, marital status, field of study, academic semester, previous semester grade point average (GPA), interest levels in the field of study, study hours, parent’s education, and student’s place of residence were asked in this form.

Section 2. Solomon and Rothblum’s Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS)

Students’ academic procrastination was measured using the PASS. It consists of 27 items that examine three components, namely preparation for exams (items 1–6), preparation for assignments (items 9–17), and preparation for end-semester papers (items 20–25). In this study, two sets of questions were presented after each component: The first three questions (items 7, 18, and 26) measure the student’s feelings and emotions about procrastination. The second three questions (items 8, 19, and 27) assess their tendency to change the procrastination habit. The scoring criteria for the items are based on a 5-point Likert scale, including “never” (1), “rarely” (2), “sometimes” (3), “often” (4), and “always” (5). Items 4, 6, 11, 15, 16, 21, 23, and 25 are scored reversely. The scores of this scale range between 27 and 135, with scores of 27–62 indicating mild procrastination, 63–98 moderate procrastination, and 99–135 severe procrastination [ 18 ]. Solomon and Rothblum (1984) reported the reliability and internal consistency of 0.79 and 0.84, respectively, for this scale using Cronbach’s alpha method. The validity of the construct was assessed using factor analysis, and the results confirmed the acceptable validity of this scale. Besides, this scale was significantly correlated with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) ( P <  0.0005, r =  0.44), Ellis’s Assessment Test for Irrational Belief (ATIB) ( P <  0.0005, r =  0.30), and Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) ( P <  0.0005, r= -0.23) [ 30 ]. Roshanzadeh et al. (2021) studied the psychometrics of the Persian version of this scale and calculated a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.87, suggesting its acceptable reliability. The validity of this scale was also investigated by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results confirmed an acceptable fit for the structure of this scale, and all the goodness of fit (GoF) indices properly confirmed the model [ 30 ]. In the present study, the reliability of the Persian version of this scale was obtained at 0.85 by Cronbach’s alpha method.

Section 3. Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES)

Students’ self-esteem was evaluated by RSES, a ten-item scale developed by Rosenberg (1965). This scale measures one’s positive and negative feelings about oneself. Although RSES is a single-factor scale, two positive and negative factors have been emphasized in this scale in the past years [ 31 ]. This scale is scored using several proposed methods, some of which score it as a four-option spectrum (completely agree to completely disagree) and others as two options (I agree and I disagree). The second form of this scale has been prepared in the Persian version in Iran, which is scored as “I agree” and “I disagree”. In this scale, + 1 and − 1 scores are respectively assigned to each “I agree” answer and each “I disagree” answer in questions 1–5. Questions 6–10 are scored in reverse, i.e., + 1 and − 1 scores are respectively assigned to each “I agree” answer and each “I disagree” answer in questions 6–10. Scores + 10, >0, <0, and − 10 indicate very high, high, low, and very low self-esteem levels, respectively [ 32 , 33 ]. Rosenberg (1956) proposed this scale as a simple and short tool with appropriate reliability (internal consistency and re-test) and validity (convergent and divergent) [ 34 ]. Researchers claim this scale is a two-dimensional construct of positive and negative self-images when using the CFA. Besides, five items with positive words on one factor were named “positive self-esteem” (PSE), and five items with negative words on another factor were termed “negative self-esteem” (NSE) [ 35 , 36 ]. Previous studies have reported a poor fit for the single-factor model of this scale using the CFA, as well as a better fit with positive and negative self-images for the two-factor model [ 37 ]. The Persian version of this scale was presented in a psychometric study [ 38 ]. The items’ internal similarity coefficients were obtained at 0.84, 0.87, and 0.80 for the whole sample, male students and female students, respectively. In addition, the correlation coefficients between each item of this scale and the total score of the items ranged from 0.56 to 0.72, and all were statistically significant at the 0.01 level. The CFA using principal axis factorization (Promax rotation) in the above scale resulted in two factors of personal competence and capability (items 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10) and self-satisfaction (items 1, 2, 3, and 6), which explained 53.83% of the variance of the scale. Furthermore, a significant negative relationship was observed between the RSES and the Death Obsession Scale (DOS) in the whole sample (-0.34), in male students (-0.44), and in female students (-0.27), indicating the divergent validity of this scale [ 38 ]. In the present study, the reliability of the Persian version of this scale was calculated by Cronbach’s alpha method (0.82).

Section 4. Lennick and Kiel’s Moral Intelligence Questionnaire (MIQ)

The students’ moral intelligence was evaluated using Lennick and Kiel’s MIQ, which consists of 20 items examining four subscales, namely honesty (items 1–6), responsibility (items 7–12), forgiveness (items 13–16), and sympathy (items 17–20). Items are scored based on a 5-point Likert scale (never = 1, rarely = 2, sometimes = 3, oftentimes = 4, and always = 5). The scores of this questionnaire range between 20 and 100, with scores 20–33, 34–66, and >67 indicating low, average, and high moral intelligence levels, respectively [ 27 ]. Shahbaziyan et al. (2019) reported a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.91 for the reliability of the Persian version of this questionnaire, indicating a favorable level. The validity of this questionnaire was assessed by the CFA, where the good fit of the model revealed its favorable validity [ 24 ]. In the present study, the reliability of the Persian version of this questionnaire was obtained at 0.94 using Cronbach’s alpha method.

Ethical considerations

The necessary permits were obtained from the Vice-Chancellor for Research and Technology and the Research Ethics Council of Shahroud University of Medical Sciences (Code of Ethics: IR.SHMU.REC.1402.043). Additionally, necessary arrangements were made with the officials of all four faculties, namely nursing and midwifery, medicine, paramedicine, health, and the heads of each field of study. Afterwards, the study objectives and relevant link were posted on social networks such as Telegram and WhatsApp within the students’ study groups and channels. They were asked to complete it in their free time.

Statistical analysis

The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential tests (multivariate linear regression with backward method) in SPSS software, with a significance level of 0.05.

In this study, most participants were female (64.4%) and single (95.1%). The mean and standard deviation of the participants’ age and GPA were 22.39 ± 2.21 and 16.65 ± 1.40, respectively. Other demographic characteristics of participating students are listed in Table  1 . The participants’ average academic procrastination, self-esteem, and moral intelligence scores were 81.13 ± 89.06, 5.4 ± 03.84, and 78.87 ± 12.31, respectively. Table  2 presents the averages of these scores based on their subscales.

In this study, 96.1% of the students experienced moderate to severe levels of academic procrastination, and 80% of the students reported high and very high levels of self-esteem. Also, only 12.7% of the students experienced mild to moderate levels of moral intelligence. Figure  1 presents different levels of academic procrastination, self-esteem, and moral intelligence of the participating students.

The level of academic procrastination, self-esteem, and moral intelligence of participating students

The results of the backward multivariable linear regression model explained 27.7% of the variance of academic procrastination by the variables in the model. This model demonstrated that for every unit increase in self-esteem, GPA, and interest in the study field, the students’ average score of academic procrastination decreased by 0.94, 2.38, and 1.14 units, respectively (Table  3 ). Furthermore, no statistically significant relationship was observed between the students’ academic procrastination and moral intelligence ( P =  0.285).

In this study, 96.1% of students experienced moderate to severe levels of academic procrastination. In a survey of students at five universities in Saudi Arabia, 7.7% and 62.8% of the participants reported severe and moderate academic procrastination, respectively [ 39 ]. Zhang et al. (2018) presented evidence that 74.1% of second to fourth-year undergraduate students of health professions were somehow involved in academic procrastination and postponed at least one of their coursework [ 10 ]. Uma et al. (2020) reported that 28.5% and 38.0% of dental students experienced severe and moderate levels of academic procrastination, respectively [ 29 ]. Accordingly, academic procrastination is among the most common problems students face. Therefore, it is necessary to highlight the importance of using appropriate strategies, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) [ 40 ] and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)-based interventions [ 41 , 42 ], to reduce students’ academic procrastination.

The results of this study indicated a significant negative relationship between students’ academic procrastination and self-esteem. Similarly, self-esteem is reportedly one of the factors affecting students’ academic procrastination in various studies [ 10 , 16 , 17 , 18 ]. In this respect, lower degrees of academic procrastination were observed in students with higher self-esteem. Katz et al. (2014) claim that academic procrastination leads to adverse cognitive and emotional consequences, including a decrease in people’s self-confidence and self-esteem. As a result, those with low self-esteem procrastinate to protect themselves [ 43 ]. According to Babu et al. (2019), people with high self-esteem usually do not postpone completing assignments and tasks. In contrast, people with low self-esteem often suffer from procrastination and postpone doing tasks until the last moment [ 17 ]. In other words, students with low self-esteem often experience high levels of academic procrastination due to the fear of failure in achieving their goals. In fact, when students do not expect success and growth because of low self-esteem, they do not strive to achieve their goals [ 18 ]. Therefore, low self-esteem will result in students’ academic procrastination.

The present study showed no significant relationship between academic procrastination and students’ moral intelligence. However, Shahbaziyan et al. (2018) observed a significant negative relationship between students’ academic procrastination and moral intelligence [ 24 ]. Narimani et al. (2017) believe that students with high moral intelligence behave consistently with individual and social values and are reluctant to procrastinate. Furthermore, students with rooted honesty as a particular behavior in the depths of their souls do not postpone their work and assignments without any reasonable cause and are always regular [ 44 ]. Therefore, moral intelligence is considered a predictive and deterrent factor of procrastination and helps a person avoid procrastination and negligence [ 24 , 44 ]. The obtained inconsistency may be due to the difference in the individual, cultural, and social characteristics of the studied societies and the different educational and environmental conditions at universities.

In this study, lower GPAs were recorded in students with higher levels of academic procrastination. Similar to this finding, a meta-analytical study showed a significant negative relationship between students’ academic procrastination and academic success [ 45 ]. Goroshit and Hen (2021) investigated the impact of academic procrastination on academic performance in general and specifically in students with learning disabilities (LD). The results indicated that students with LD reported lower GPAs and higher levels of academic procrastination than students without LD. In addition, a significant negative correlation was observed between students’ academic procrastination and GPA [ 46 ]. Thus, academic procrastination adversely affects students’ academic performance and many psychophysical problems and negative emotions [ 47 ].

Based on the results of this study, students with less interest in their field of study experienced higher levels of academic procrastination. According to Valizadeh et al. (2016), interest in the study field negatively affects and reduces students’ academic procrastination; in other words, less procrastination occurs in students interested in their field of study. On the other hand, when students feel more capable and efficient in doing their academic assignments and possess skill and mastery goals, they will be more interested in their field. Hence, they will not postpone tasks until the last minute [ 48 ]. Overall, it can be claimed that students who consider a task unpleasant and tedious or are not very interested in it will probably postpone doing the task. This lack of interest is also true even for students whose academic success is not affected by delaying behaviors [ 49 ].

Research limitations and recommendations

A major limitation of this study is the use of self-reporting tools. Hence, the subjects might not have answered the questions responsibly and correctly. The large number of questions in the questionnaires and their long completion time could also have negatively affected the accuracy of the participants’ answers. Moreover, this study was conducted only on the Shahroud University of Medical Sciences students, making it difficult to generalize the results to students of non-medical sciences universities in Iran. Hence, it is suggested to conduct similar studies with a longitudinal design and a larger sample size in the future.

Based on the results of this study, the majority of students experienced moderate to severe levels of academic procrastination and tended to delay their academic tasks. Furthermore, predictors of higher academic procrastination among students included low levels of self-esteem, GPA, and interest in the field of study. Therefore, improving students’ self-esteem is crucial in reducing academic procrastination. Additionally, the importance of students’ interest in their field of study in reducing issues like academic procrastination should not be overlooked. By addressing these factors, academic procrastination can be minimized, ultimately leading to improved academic outcomes such as academic performance and GPA.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Abbreviations

Serious Mental Illnesses

Major Depression Disorder

Bipolar Disorder

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Post-Traumatic Stress

Grade Point Average

Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students

Beck Depression Inventory

Assessment Test for Irrational Belief

Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale

Confirmatory Factor Analysis

Goodness of Fit

Positive Self-Esteem

Negative Self-Esteem

Death Obsession Scale

Moral Intelligence Questionnaire

Statistical Package for the Social Sciences

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Learning Disabilities

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Acknowledgements

The present study results from a research project (No. 14020017) approved by Shahroud University of Medical Sciences. The authors herewith appreciate the support of the Deputy of Research and Technology, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences. The authors are also sincerely grateful to the officials and staff of nursing and midwifery, medicine, paramedicine, and health faculties, as well as all participating students and others who cooperated in this research.

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Saeed Ghasempour, Aliasghar Babaei & Soheil Nouri

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Conceptualization: SGH, AA; Methodology: SGH, AA; Formal analysis and investigation: MHB; Data collection: SGH, AB, SN; Writing - original draft preparation: SGH, AB, SN, MHB, AA; Writing - review and editing: SGH, AA; Resources: AA; Supervision: AA.

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Ghasempour, S., Babaei, A., Nouri, S. et al. Relationship between academic procrastination, self-esteem, and moral intelligence among medical sciences students: a cross-sectional study. BMC Psychol 12 , 225 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-01731-8

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-01731-8

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Explaining the changes in procrastination in an act-based course – psychological flexibility and time and effort management as mediators.

• 1 HYPE Centre for Teaching and Learning, Faculty of Education, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
• 2 HAMK Edu Research Unit, Häme University of Applied Sciences, Hämeenlinna, Finland

Introduction: The aim of our study is to explore the relationship between procrastination, time management skills and psychological flexibility and the changes in them during an Acceptance and Commitment therapy (ACT)-based course that included time management training. We also explored the effects of time management skills and psychological flexibility on procrastination. The study used an experimental design in an ACT-based well-being course that included time management training.

Methods: The participants were 109 students taking the course and 27 waiting list students. Analyses were conducted with Pearson correlation, mixed ANOVA and causal mediation analysis.

Results and discussion: Our results show that time management skills, psychological flexibility and procrastination were related to each other, and all changed during the course. In addition, change in both time management and psychological flexibility had an impact on the change in procrastination during the course. The results show that both time management and psychological flexibility influence the change in procrastination during an ACT-based course.

1 Introduction

University students experience academic procrastination frequently. Almost all students sometimes procrastinate during their studies, and approximately every second, a student regularly procrastinates ( Rothblum et al., 1986 ; Steel, 2007 ; Steel and Klingsieck, 2016 ). Recent research has shown that almost half of students can be classified into having severe procrastination, and of these students, 96% consider procrastination to be a problem ( Rozental et al., 2022 ). In addition, studies have shown that procrastination can lead to many negative consequences. It has been shown to be related to lower academic performance ( Steel et al., 2001 ), increased stress ( Sirois et al., 2003 ) and poorer mental health ( Stead et al., 2010 ) and have consequences for physical and psychological well-being ( Rozental et al., 2022 ). Therefore, it is necessary to understand the causes and ways to affect procrastination.

Many aspects can affect procrastination. Procrastination has traditionally been considered a form of self-regulation failure, as a weakness of will and low ability to organize one’s own studies (e.g., Senécal et al., 1995 ; Ferrari, 2001 ; Wolters, 2003 ; Steel, 2007 ). This was also found in a recent review study which concluded that most of the studies on procrastination have explored the effect of self-regulation on it ( Salguero-Pazos and Reyes-de-Cózar, 2023 ). One part of self-regulation is time management, and one common theory is that procrastination results from a person’s inability to manage time ( Glick and Orsillo, 2015 ). But time management is only one aspect and does not explain the phenomenon. It has also been suggested that emotional regulation as a part of self-regulation should be taken into account when exploring factors that maintain and cause procrastination. For example, a review study showed that the ability to control and manage emotions is one central aspect studied in procrastination research ( Salguero-Pazos and Reyes-de-Cózar, 2023 ). However, different frameworks of emotional regulation have mainly focused on modifying or regulating the emotions ( Salguero-Pazos and Reyes-de-Cózar, 2023 ). One different way to explore ways to deal with emotions is psychological flexibility ( Hayes, 2004 ; Hayes et al., 2012a ), which emphasizes acceptance of emotions instead of changing or controlling them ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Recent studies concerning procrastination have brought up the importance of psychological flexibility in decreasing procrastination, and research suggests that procrastination results from a person’s psychological inflexibility ( Glick et al., 2014 ; Scent and Boes, 2014 ; Eisenbeck et al., 2019 ; Hailikari et al., 2022 ). However, research has explored different aspects effecting procrastination separately but there is lack of studies exploring different aspects effects together ( Salguero-Pazos and Reyes-de-Cózar, 2023 ). The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of an ACT-based course developing participants’ psychological flexibility and time management skills on procrastination. In addition, we explored the effects of time management and psychological flexibility on procrastination.

2 Theoretical background

Procrastination may be defined as ‘the voluntary delay of an intended and necessary and/or [personally] important activity, despite expecting potential negative consequences that outweigh the positive consequences of the delay’ ( Klingsieck, 2013 , p. 26). Procrastination may be defined as self-handicapping behavior that occurs when a person postpones a task they intend to complete, potentially leading to increased stress ( Steel, 2007 ). Procrastination is often conceptualized as a self-regulation failure, meaning that there is a gap between an individual’s intentions and actions ( Dewitte and Lens, 2000 ) rather than an intention to delay. Typical for procrastination is that it is needless, counterproductive, and accompanied by feelings of discomfort ( Schraw et al., 2007 ). Klingsieck (2013) further claims that typically procrastination is irrational, and people cannot control their procrastination even if they want to (see also Grunschel and Schopenhauer, 2015 ).

Most of the studies on procrastination have focused on academic procrastination – that is, procrastination of study-relevant activities of university students ( van Eerde and Klingsieck, 2018 ; Salguero-Pazos and Reyes-de-Cózar, 2023 ). In the academic context, procrastination is often associated with several negative factors, such as lower academic performance ( Steel et al., 2001 ), increased stress ( Sirois et al., 2003 ), poorer well-being ( Kim and Seo, 2015 ) and poorer mental health ( Stead et al., 2010 ). There is no single factor that could fully explain the reason for procrastination. There are several different theoretical approaches providing explanations for procrastination behavior ( Klingsieck, 2013 ; Salguero-Pazos and Reyes-de-Cózar, 2023 ). In the academic context, individual motivational factors, such as motivation, self-regulation, time management and learning strategies, are the most relevant, as these factors may be addressed by pedagogical choices. Some of the other approaches focus more on, for example, personality traits and disorders, which are not so easily influenced by pedagogical choices but rather require more psychological expertise.

One different way to explore ways to deal with emotions is psychological flexibility ( Hayes, 2004 ; Hayes et al., 2012a ), which emphasizes acceptance of emotions instead of changing or controlling them ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Recent studies concerning procrastination have brought up the importance of psychological flexibility in decreasing procrastination, and research suggests that procrastination results from a person’s psychological inflexibility ( Glick et al., 2014 ; Scent and Boes, 2014 ; Eisenbeck et al., 2019 ; Hailikari et al., 2022 ). This highlights the need to develop skills in psychological flexibility to decrease procrastination: important is to develop one’s skills to accept negative and difficult feelings and emotions which may arise in difficult learning situations; and further, to take actions – meaning get to work – despite these difficult feelings.

2.1 Time management affecting procrastination

Procrastination is frequently viewed as a failure in self-regulation, characterized by a lack of willpower and an inability to organize one’s own studying ( Wolters and Brady, 2021 ). Recent studies suggest that procrastination often stems from an individual’s struggle to effectively manage their time ( Hailikari et al., 2021 ; Fentaw et al., 2022 ; Sefriani et al., 2022 ). Time and effort management skills encompass a university student’s capacity to establish goals, study in alignment with those goals, manage their time efficiently and prioritize tasks ( Entwistle, 2001 ). Studies have consistently demonstrated that these skills are crucial factors in promoting academic progress (e.g., Pintrich, 2004 ; Haarala-Muhonen et al., 2011 ; Rytkönen et al., 2012 ; Häfner et al., 2015 ; Asikainen et al., 2020 ). Furthermore, it has been shown that many higher education students encounter challenges in developing and enhancing time management skills during their studies ( Parpala et al., 2017 ).

Time management has been found to be related to procrastination. It has been shown that poor time management skills are positively related to procrastination behavior ( Wolters et al., 2017 ; Fentaw et al., 2022 ). In a study by Wolters et al. (2017) , time management skills had the strongest association with procrastination compared to other aspects such as motivation and metacognition factors. It also has been shown that procrastination can be decreased with time management training ( Häfner et al., 2014 ), and online studying, which has been increasing in university studies since the pandemic, can cause time management problems. Additionally, students’ beliefs about their self-regulation skills, such as time management, are related to procrastination ( Han et al., 2023 ).

People who fail to self-regulate their own behavior, especially when facing aversive tasks, often give into the short-term rewards and instant gratification that can come when avoiding a task ( Sirois and Pychyl, 2013 ). Thus, it is a matter of deficit in emotional regulation over long-term goals. Recent research suggests that, instead of being purely a self-regulation or time management problem, procrastination is strongly influenced by an inability to cope with negative emotions that arise in challenging situations ( Gagnon et al., 2016 ; Hailikari et al., 2021 ). One promising and effective skill for emotional regulation is psychological flexibility, and thus, it is necessary to consider it as a central factor influencing procrastination.

2.2 Psychological flexibility

One aspect affecting students’ procrastination is psychological flexibility ( Glick et al., 2014 ; Sutcliffe et al., 2019 ). Psychological flexibility describes people’s ability to direct their behavior and attention towards actions that are meaningful for them flexibly in the presence of negative thoughts and feelings ( Hayes et al., 2006 ; Chawla and Ostafin, 2007 ). Thus, people with high psychological flexibility can function according to what is really in line with their values or meaningful for them and by living a value-based life, accepting negative thoughts, emotions and sensations by taking on an observer perspective to them and opening up to them mindfully ( Bond et al., 2010 ). The origin of the concept comes from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which is one of the third-wave therapies focused on reducing experiential avoidance, which is an opposite process of psychological flexibility and can be regarded as psychological inflexibility ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Experiential avoidance means avoiding negative feelings, sensations, or thoughts in a way that it causes harm in the long run ( Hayes et al., 2012a ).

Psychological flexibility realizes though six overlapping processes: cognitive defusion, being present, self as context, acceptance, values and committed action ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Cognitive defusion is a core process underlying the third-wave therapies and represents the process where one learns to look at one’s thoughts from an observer’s perspective rather than letting the thoughts define their actions ( Hayes, 2019 ). Cognitive defusion thus means that one can look at feelings and thoughts as separate and not consider them as truths about oneself ( Hayes, 2019 ). Being present is an important process for cognitive defusion, as it means being able to focus on the present moment instead of living in the past or future and, thus, being in contact with events or thoughts as they occur, emphasizing noticing them as an observer instead of being judgmental towards them ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Being present is closely related to seeing oneself as a context or a container of emotions instead of being the emotions ( Hayes, 2019 ). That is to say, self as context includes seeing oneself as an observing self who is separate from the emotions and thoughts ( Hayes et al., 2012c ). Acceptance is the opposite of avoiding and running away from or fighting against difficult emotions and thoughts but instead actively accepting difficult emotions as they come without trying to change them ( Hayes et al., 2006 ).

Living a meaningful life is a core aim with developing psychological flexibility. Shifting the focus from short-term rewards involves really exploring one’s values and what is important to oneself. It is an important part of the development of psychological flexibility ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). People often can have different kinds of aims that they think they must do, such as for social acceptance, and do not really think about what is truly meaningful for themselves ( Hayes, 2019 ). The sixth aspect of flexibility, committed action, means that people take actions based on their values and what is meaningful for them with the help of the other five processes ( Hayes et al., 2006 ).

A total of 40 years of research has shown that ACT intervention targeted at increasing psychological flexibility has an important impact on improving well-being and life satisfaction as well as decreasing a wide range of psychological problems such as depression, anxiety and stress for different populations including university students (for review studies and meta-analyses, see Howell and Passmore, 2019 ; Bai et al., 2020 ; Gloster et al., 2020 ). Furthermore, the importance of psychological flexibility has been noticed in relation to university studies. It has been shown that psychological flexibility is positively related to positive emotions and progression in studying ( Asikainen et al., 2018 ; Hailikari et al., 2022 ). In addition, it is positively related to self-regulated learning ( Asikainen et al., 2018 ) and integration in studies ( Asikainen, 2018 ) and negatively related to self-handicapping strategies in studies ( Hailikari et al., 2022 ). These self-handicapping processes have been shown be related to psychological inflexibility, as studies have shown that psychological inflexibility such as avoiding negative emotions and thoughts is clearly related to experiences of procrastination ( Dionne, 2016 ; Gagnon et al., 2016 , 2019 ). In a study by Eisenbeck et al. (2019) they found that psychological inflexibility mediated between procrastination and several aspects comprising psychological distress, anxiety, depression and stress. They argued that psychological inflexibility is an underlying mechanism of procrastination as procrastination may result from not procrastinating students not only experiencing negative emotions but avoiding them ( Eisenbeck et al., 2019 ). ACT-based interventions promoting psychological flexibility have been shown to decrease procrastination ( Glick et al., 2014 ; Gagnon et al., 2016 , 2019 ). and to give longer-term effects than for example cognitive behavioral therapy-based interventions ( Wang et al., 2017 ). Furthermore, it has been suggested that approaches to increase psychological flexibility in order to reduce procrastination and enhance students’ wellbeing should be explored ( Sutcliffe et al., 2019 ). Thus, it is fair to suggest that the core aspect in psychological flexibility which is to make choices to act based on what is meaningful despite of the possible discomfort it may cause by accepting these negative feelings and thoughts is one of the main processes that could also effect procrastination as it includes the unnecessary postponement of activities which are related to a goal ( Knaus, 2000 ).

3 Research questions

Time management training as well as ACT-based training can have effects on procrastination, but few studies have explored these effects together. One study has shown that both psychological flexibility and time management skills explain procrastination ( Hailikari et al., 2022 ), but the study was done at one timepoint. The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between procrastination, time management and psychological flexibility and the changes in them during an ACT-based course that includes time management training. We also explore the effects of time management skills and psychological flexibility on procrastination. Specific research questions are:

• How is procrastination related to psychological flexibility and time management?

• How does the ACT-based course affect students’ psychological flexibility, procrastination and time management?

• How do changes in psychological flexibility and time management mediate the effect between the course and changes in procrastination?

We expect that time management skills and psychological flexibility are related to procrastination based on previous research ( Glick et al., 2014 ; Gagnon et al., 2016 ; Hailikari et al., 2021 ). We expect that the ACT-based course, which includes time management training, has an impact on students’ time management skills ( Häfner et al., 2015 ), psychological flexibility ( Räsänen et al., 2016 ) and procrastination ( Gagnon et al., 2016 ). In addition, we expect that both psychological flexibility and time management skills have an effect on procrastination during the course ( Hailikari et al., 2021 ; Katajavuori et al., 2021 ).

4.1 Participants

The data were collected as part of an optional eight-week online course aiming to foster students’ well-being and studying. The course was organized in the fall of 2021 at the University of x, and students could get 3 ECTS for completing the course. The course was based on developing students’ psychological flexibility processes as well as study skills such as time management. The course included seven different themes comprising introduction materials, individual exercises and group discussion on a weekly basis. The themes included, for example, reflecting on one’s values, self-compassion, defusion, mindfulness and committed action (see Table 1 ). In addition, students did a time management exercise in which they were asked to monitor and record their time management for a week and reflect on what they learned from it. Students wrote a reflective learning report at the end of the course, reflecting on the course and how it affected their studying. Completing the course required submitting the assignments on time and participating to peer group meetings, and course was assessed on a pass-fail basis. The course was delivered and developed by the university lecturers working in the Centre × (reference).

Table 1 . The themes of the course.

The study was conducted in line with the Ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. The participants were informed about the research. Filling in the questionnaire data was part of the course assignment where they filled out the questionnaires and got feedback on them in the beginning and at the end of the course but participating in the research was voluntary and a consent was collected for using their data in our research. Participation in the study did not affect course completion in any way, and students had the possibility to change their consent to participate in the study at any stage during the course. A total of 151 students completed the course. Of these 151 students, 109 answered both questionnaires in the beginning and at the end of the course and gave permission to use their answers in the research. Of these students, 94 were female and 15 were male. A total of 37% of the students were first-year students, 28% were second-year students, 16% were third-year students, 8% were fourth-year students and the rest started their studies before 2018. The ages ranged between 20 and 60 years (mean = 26.97, median = 24.99, Std = 7.08). The control group comprised 27 students on the waiting list to another similar course in the spring of 2022. Of these students, 23 were female and 4 were male. Total of 48% of the students were first-year students, 7% were second-year students, 11% were third-year students, 15% were fourth-year students and the rest started their studies before 2018. The ages ranged between 20 and 52 years (mean = 32.37, median = 28.46, Std = 10.12). These students in control group completed the questionnaires at the same time than the students who participated to the course. The students were from different faculties and disciplines from the university, they did not know each other and were not in contact during the course.

4.2 Instruments

Time and effort management was measured with the organized studying scale, which includes statements concerning students’ time and effort management behavior (four items) from the HowULearn questionnaire ( Parpala and Lindblom-Ylänne, 2012 ). Its scales are widely used and validated in Finnish and international contexts (e.g., Parpala et al., 2010 ; Rytkönen et al., 2012 ; Ruohoniemi et al., 2017 ; Postareff et al., 2018 ; Cheung et al., 2020 ). Time and effort management skills were measured with four items on a Likert scale from 1 = totally disagree to 5 = totally agree (e.g., ‘I am generally systematic and organized in my studies’). Psychological flexibility was measured with the compact questionnaire ( Francis et al., 2016 ), which has been widely used in different contexts ( Tatta et al., 2022 ; Eadeh et al., 2023 ; Zhao et al., 2024 ). The items used a seven-point Likert scale (0 = strongly disagree to 6 = strongly agree). Procrastination was measured with a short version of the pure procrastination scale (PPS) ( Svartdal and Steel, 2017 ) using a five-point Likert scale (five items, e.g., ‘In preparation for some deadlines, I often waste time by doing other things’). This short version of the original PPS has been proven to be a robust instrument to measure academic procrastination ( Svartdal and Steel, 2017 ).

4.3 Analysis

The relationship between psychological flexibility, procrastination and time and effort management was analyzed with the Pearson correlation. The change in psychological flexibility, time and effort management and procrastination was analyzed with a mixed ANOVA comparing the experimental and control group using the Time × group association. Change variables of the scales measuring procrastination, time management and psychological flexibility were conducted by subtracting the sum of the first measurement from the second measurement. The effects of the course on change in procrastination with psychological flexibility and organized studying as mediators was conducted with causal mediation analysis using Spss Process.

The correlational analysis showed that procrastination correlated negatively with time and effort management in the first ( r  = −674, p  < 0.001) and second ( r  = −0.654, p  < 0.001) measurements. A negative correlation between psychological flexibility and procrastination was found in the first (−0.394, p  < 0.001) and second (−0.459, p  < 0.001) measurements. In addition, time and effort management and psychological flexibility correlated positively with each other in the first ( r  = 0.398, p  < 0.001) and second ( r  = 0.377, p  < 0.001) measurements. Results of the correlation analysis can be seen in Table 2 .

Table 2 . Correlations between procrastination, organized studying and psychological flexibility in the beginning and at the end of the course.

The mixed ANOVA showed that time and effort management and psychological flexibility increased statistically significantly (Time × group) compared to the control group ( p  = 0.011–0.030). In addition, procrastination decreased statistically significantly compared to the control group ( p  = 0.015). The results from the mixed ANOVA analysis can be seen in Table 3 .

Table 3 . Results of the mixed ANOVA analysis.

The Hayes process Macro model 4 was applied to assess the direct, indirect and total effects between the treatment variable group and outcome variable change in procrastination with change in psychological flexibility and time and effort management as mediating variables. The analysis showed that the treatment variable group has statistically significant direct effects on the change in time and effort management ( p = 0.030) and change in psychological flexibility ( p = 0.011). The total effect of the model was 0.213 and the indirect effects from treatment to changes in procrastination through both change in psychological flexibility and time and effort management were statistical significant ( p < 0.005) (see Figure 1 ).

Figure 1 . The effects on the course on change in procrastination through mediating variables change in psychological flexibility and time and effort management.

6 Discussion

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between procrastination, time and effort management and psychological flexibility and changes in them during an ACT-based course. We also explore the effects of change in time and effort management and psychological flexibility on procrastination.

The results of our study showed that time and effort management and psychological flexibility were both negatively related with procrastination. This finding is in line with previous studies that have shown that time and effort management skills and psychological flexibility are both associated with procrastination ( Ferrari, 2001 ; Wolters, 2003 ; Steel, 2007 ; Glick et al., 2014 ; Dionne, 2016 ; Gagnon et al., 2016 , 2019 ; Hailikari et al., 2021 ). Furthermore, the results of our study showed that there was a correlation between psychological flexibility and time and effort management skills. This finding is in line with previous studies that have found a negative correlation between psychological flexibility and time management ( Asikainen et al., 2019 ; Hailikari et al., 2022 ). In a study exploring profiles based on time management and psychological flexibility by Hailikari et al. (2022) , it was suggested that time management skills and psychological flexibility skills go hand in hand. In our course setting, both skills were supported, but a clear correlation was found both in the beginning and at the end of the course. Previous studies have shown that psychological flexibility is related to better self-regulation skills and better progression in studies ( Asikainen et al., 2018 ; Eisenbeck et al., 2019 ; LeJeune and Luoma, 2019 ; Hailikari et al., 2022 ); it is also positively related to time and effort management skills ( Hailikari et al., 2022 ).

The results of our study showed that, during an online ACT-based course that included time management skills, and psychological flexibility increased and procrastination decreased compared to the control group. Previous studies have shown that ACT-based interventions can increase psychological flexibility skills (e.g., Räsänen et al., 2016 ). This was evident in our online course, in which the group served as support for the individuals, and the teacher had a very small role. Previous studies have shown that peer-group-supported ACT-based interventions can support psychological flexibility ( Grégoire et al., 2022 ), but in this study, the peers were trained to lead the intervention. It seems that self-directed group discussion has an impact as well. In addition, previous studies have shown that time management skills can be increased by practicing with interventions ( Häfner et al., 2014 ). Although the time management training in this course centered on time usage follow-up for 1 week and reflection of time usage, it seems that it was enough to make an impact during the course. The positive and long-term effects of time management training have been found in earlier studies ( Green and Skinner, 2005 ; Wingren et al., 2022 ), but our study showed that the effects were reached already after a one-week follow-up. Time usage follow-up can add students’ perceived control over time, which has been found to be related to time management and well-being ( Chang and Nguyen, 2011 ).

In addition, there was impact on procrastination during the course, which was expected, as it has been shown that both time-management-based ( Häfner et al., 2014 ) and ACT-based interventions ( Gagnon et al., 2016 ) can decrease procrastination. The results suggest that, with an ACT-based course including time usage follow-up and reflection, it is possible to decrease students’ experiences of procrastination in their studies. Furthermore, the results of our study showed that both changes in time management and psychological flexibility have an impact on change in procrastination in this course. This indicates that reducing procrastination can be done not only by promoting time management skills but also by focusing on developing psychological flexibility skills. Psychological flexibility promotes value-based actions, despite all the negative emotions and feelings one might have, and decreases avoidance behavior ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Thus, psychological flexibility can help students’ time management by giving them tools to allow time for important aspects of life and to commit to one’s value-based goals.

The role of psychological flexibility in procrastination has also been shown in previous studies. It has been stated that procrastination may include the decreased ability to be present ( Glick et al., 2014 ), which is a central part of psychological flexibility ( Hayes et al., 2006 ). Previous studies have also shown that, for example, perfectionism, including a very critical assessment of one’s own behavior and performance, which is evident among university students, is related to procrastination ( Çapan, 2010 ; Ashraf et al., 2023 ). Psychological flexibility skills help one to accept difficult emotions and thoughts about oneself and can help to develop a less critical and more lenient attitude towards oneself, living life according to one’s own values instead of avoidance ( Hayes, 2019 ). This acceptance of difficult emotions and value-based actions instead of experimental avoidance are key aspects of psychological flexibility and are shown to be in the heart of procrastination, which is a problem of avoidance ( Dionne and Duckworth, 2011 ).

6.1 Limitations

There are some limitations that need to be taken into account concerning this study. Even though this course was optional for all the students in the university, it is likely that this study included a selected sample of students who were interested in improving their well-being and studying because this course was advertised as a course that especially aims to foster participants’ well-being. Thus, the generalization of the results should be considered carefully. The number of the participants could have been higher, and only two-thirds of the students who participated in this course participated in this research. It is possible that the group of participating students differed from those who did not give their consent form. In addition, the number of the students in the control group was very small. Unfortunately, we were unable to get more answers from the waiting list participants. This could have had an impact on the study results. However, there is evidence that reliable results can be obtained even though the control group is much smaller ( Hutchins et al., 2021 ) Furthermore, this study did not include a follow-up measurement; thus, it is not possible to say how permanent the changes concerning procrastination and the other measurements were. In the future, it is important to have a longitudinal setting to explore how permanent the benefits that can be gained during this intervention course are. In addition, future research should consider how the course affects study progression measured with earned credits. The present study included only self-reported measures.

6.2 Practical implications

In addition to improving students’ well-being and studying in several ways ( Asikainen et al., 2019 ; Katajavuori et al., 2021 ), an ACT-based intervention combined with time management training in the higher education context can be a beneficial way to diminish procrastination in the academic context. These kinds of courses are able to improve time management and psychological flexibility skills, which can be considered very important future working life skills as well. Different kinds of interventions have been delivered to students as part of counselling, but these kinds of courses could be implemented in curriculums. Furthermore, the skills for both time and effort management and psychological flexibility should be supported during higher education. It would be important that pedagogical awareness and pedagogical skills of the teachers would improve, and that practical teaching work would include guidance on breaking down goals and tasks. Furthermore, including formative assessment to teaching would make it possible for students to get feedback of their progression of studies and their performance and that way, help the students in their effort management. The teachers could also make it explicit that learning and completing the course may not always be nice but may include difficult feelings and emotions, which do not disappear by avoiding the assignments and are part of normal life and studying.

In addition, New approaches and ways to reduce procrastination has been called for ( Goroshit, 2018 ; Zacks and Hen, 2018 ), and one suggestion to enhance student well-being and reduce procrastination is to increase psychological flexibility among university students ( Sutcliffe et al., 2019 ). Based on our study, it seems that this kind of online intervention course could be one way to accomplish this.

Data availability statement

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

Ethics statement

Ethical review and approval was not required for the study on human participants in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The studies were conducted in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

Author contributions

HA: Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. TH: Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. NK: Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing.

The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. Finnish Ministry of Education has funded this research.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Keywords: procrastination, psychological flexibility, time management, higher education, acceptance and commitment therapy

Citation: Asikainen H, Hailikari T and Katajavuori N (2024) Explaining the changes in procrastination in an ACT-based course – psychological flexibility and time and effort management as mediators. Front. Psychol . 15:1331205. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1331205

Received: 31 October 2023; Accepted: 16 April 2024; Published: 01 May 2024.

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*Correspondence: Henna Asikainen, [email protected] ; Telle Hailikari, [email protected]

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.