Understanding Delayed Gratification:
The Psychology of Procrastination
Procrastination, the voluntary delay of an intended course of action, is a widespread behaviour that touches almost everyone. While it's common, procrastination is generally misunderstood and usually blamed on laziness, low motivation, or poor time management skills.
In fact, new developments in the field of psychology have made it possible to understand the intricate mix of cognitive, effective and motivational processes that ultimately drive procrastination.
The scale of procrastination
They published a paper claiming that nearly 20% of adults and up to 70% of college students have been known to procrastinate. Procrastination can lead one to suffer the dire consequences like loss of productivity and deadlines, along with a lot of stress on your plate. In addition to this, chronic procrastination can cause long-lasting mental illness such as anxiety, depression and low self-esteem.
Theories of Procrastination
Researchers have suggested various theories attempting to explain procrastination psychology. Below are some of the more impactful theories:
1. Task Aversion Theory:
This theory explains procrastination as a response to a task that is seen by the individual to be either unpleasant or an overwhelming experience.
2. Theory of Time Management :
This theory states that procrastination is the result of individuals being incompetent about managing their time, which includes poor planning.
3. Self-Regulation Theory:
Procrastination occurs when a person fails to exercise self-control over the thoughts, feelings and behaviours that interfere with accomplishing a task or making a choice.
4. Emotional Regulation Theory:
According to this theory, procrastination is a strategy for dealing with negative emotions (e.g., anxiety, fear, or stress).
The Part Of Cognitive Biases
The Role of Cognitive Biases in Procrastination There are many kinds of biases, such as the more common ones below:
1. Present Bias: Giving more weight to immediate rewards than future benefits.
2. Hyperbolic Discounting — The inclination to underestimate the value of benefits that lie in the future.
3. Loss aversion — we love to gain, but fear losing even more!
4. The Planning Fallacy: The inclination to underestimate how long it will take to complete a future task.
Emotional Roots of Procrastination
Under the disguise of procrastination are pitched emotional issues that include:
1. Fear of making mistakes:
The fear that we are not good enough or will do something wrong.
2. Fear of Success:
The fear that we will succeed and then have the burden of keeping that success up.
3. PERFECTIONISM:
Considered the need to achieve but just as much the need to be perfect and fearing creating anything less.
4. Low Self-Esteem:
Negative talk and self-doubt can cause procrastination to avoid feelings of inadequacy.
Overcoming Procrastination
However, the good news is that procrastination is a behaviour that can be changed with appropriate approaches and thought patterns. Now, here are some of the solutions to get rid of procrastination-
1.Breaking Down Tasks/ Divide large tasks into smaller, manageable chunks.
2. Set goals that are Specific, Attainable and Measurable.
3. Planning: Develop time for tasks and stay the course
4. This lesson consists of two strategies that you can try, with the second one being a similar method: Using the Pomodoro Technique – 25 minutes work and then take a 5 mins break.
5. Accountability: Which is why it make excellent sense to share with someone else what your goals are, and how you are measuring progress against them. More eyes on your goal can add additional motivation and accountability to seeing the desired results come into being.
Conclusion
👉Procrastination is a multifaceted phenomenon that stems from cognitive, emotional and motivational boosters. Understanding the psychology of procrastination can help people overcome this behaviour.
At the end of the day, procrastination is not personality you have; it is a behaviour that can be unlearned with practice and perseverance .
0 Comments