By Isabelle Lepine, Fourth Year, French and Politics
The art of procrastination amongst students is one that is heavily relatable, no matter what level of academic prowess a person is perceived to have. Many will find themselves aggressively scrubbing a toilet to avoid their next set of readings or completing tasks they have been meaning to tick off for months in lieu of planning the next looming essay. Understanding the psychological roots of this all-too-familiar phenomenon can provide effective strategies for overcoming it and fulfilling one’s academic potential.
According to various scholars published in PubMed Central, academic procrastination is a type of domain-specific behaviour that refers to the tendency of students to delay or postpone completing tasks, such as essay writing, seminar preparation or general studying for an exam, even though they know they should perform these actions and have a specific deadline for completion. Psychology Today suggests procrastination can develop from a constant desire to achieve perfection, general task aversion, a lack of motivation, and a sense of duty rather than interest.
Procrastination is often dismissed as laziness, but its roots tend to be deeper and more complex than that. Here's why—and how to handle it better. https://t.co/3Xy7tkWOo8 pic.twitter.com/XuRtMDzdq6
— Psychology Today (@PsychToday) April 18, 2023
But why do over 80% of students struggle to get out of this procrastination pit?
Much of the scholarship investigating the psychology behind procrastination, as posited by the New York Times, suggests that the brain favours immediate rewards over long-term goals. Students notoriously struggle with anxiety from the surmounting pressures placed on them by university, financial struggles, relationship and friendship management, and being far from home. Because of this, they often seek a quick solution to this stress through manageable and fleeting achievements like administrative tasks, answering emails, and cleaning. Similarly, by ignoring the task at hand, they find themselves emotionally regulating or masking, what could actually be a fear of failure or behaviour that mirrors self-sabotage all for the fleeting hit of serotonin that comes from fulfilling a task. However, this comes at a considerable cost, with a study conducted at the University of Durham showing a clear link between procrastination and high levels of anxiety, stress and depression, particularly among students.
It goes without saying that the impact of this added stress is detrimental to the wellbeing and overall experience of an individual's student life. Many report long term-effects on self-esteem, which in turn compounds on the vicious cycle of avoidance. Amy, a third year History student at the University of Bristol, reported how her sleep pattern suffered during what she described to be an ‘essay crisis’. The culprit? Age-old procrastination.
‘I just felt really overwhelmed by my assignments at the end of second year; [the deadlines had] all fallen at once and I totally misunderstood one of my questions. I basically had to scrap the whole thing and then couldn’t face starting it all over again, until I was literally forced to two days before it was due.’
Juno, a fourth-year Law student at the University of West England, found himself in a similar position of panic. ‘I felt really stupid. I had been used to working at my own pace during my year in industry the year before. There were deadlines on the work placement obviously, but it was more malleable – like I negotiated with my boss when I felt capable of getting the completed tasks to him. Law assignments are relentless anyway, but basically totally bailed out on one of my first tasks this year.’
How can procrastination be addressed, if the majority of people fall victim to it? Self-awareness is a technique that is highly recommended by a multitude of scholars. Being able to identify personal triggers of procrastination allows people to find loopholes around such panic. Danielle, a fourth year University of Bristol languages student, offered in conversation how she felt stifled by a class presentation in French. In order to overcome it she explained how ‘I just threw myself into the deep end and offered to go first. That way I could set the standard and wouldn’t have it in the back of my mind for the rest of the term.”
Breaking tasks into smaller steps and setting realistic goals is another way in which procrastination can be conquered. By splitting one big goal into ten smaller goals, the brain’s desire to achieve or tick off tasks succinctly is realised. Similarly, time-management tactics can be utilised to fulfil goals. The pomodoro technique (25 minutes of focused work, followed by a five-minute short break) is often popular among students. Other techniques include time-blocking – recommended by entrepreneur and influencer Grace Beverley in her self-coined ‘productivity method’; emotional regulation strategies, like mindfulness or journalling; accountability and support found in study partners, or even setting your own deadlines.
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The 1% better each day theory has never been more applicable than with procrastination. Also known as ‘The Principle of Aggregate Marginal Gains’, this concept suggests that small, consistent improvements can add up to significant results over time. If procrastination levels amongst students improve by 1 per cent each day for the whole of the academic year, they could see remarkable growth in productivity by the time summer exams arrive in May and June. Tackling procrastination can be a daunting task, however, it is important to remember students often face this challenge together, and you are not facing it alone.
Featured Image: Unsplash / Unseen Studio
How do you manage procrastination?
