What Is Procrastination?
We often claim to be procrastinating instead of completing the submission before a deadline. But have you ever wondered why we procrastinate?
We all tend to procrastinate every now and then instead of doing the task at hand. In fact, I have opened and closed this article, without making significant progress, more times than I would like to admit. But in the end, I did end up writing it. So why is procrastination a big deal? I finished the task I set out to complete, does it really matter how I got there? It does. Procrastination tells us a lot more than just how long it took you to finish your task.
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Why Do We Procrastinate?
Dr Piers Steel, a professor at the University of Calgary, defines procrastination as the conscious decision to delay finishing a task (e.g., coursework or cleaning your room), all the while being aware it is counterproductive and will cause more problems as a result. This also seems to define laziness and many of us tend to use laziness and procrastination interchangeably.
However, procrastination is not laziness. If it were simply a case of being lazy, it does not explain how we double down our efforts to ensure we complete the task closer to an event, whether it is a submission deadline or having guests over. Nic Voge, senior associate director of the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning at Princeton University, states that procrastination “can be traced to underlying and more complex psychological reasons”.
What Are the Types of Procrastinators?
According to Psychologist, Dr Linda Sapadin, there are 6 different types of procrastinators which then fall under 1 of 3 different behaviour types
wherein individuals focus on either the details, the future or
interpersonal relationships. The 6 different procrastinators are dreamers, defiers, over-doers, worriers, perfectionists and crisis makers. Let's take a closer look at each of them.
Dreamer
Individuals have grandiose ideas of what the end result can be but the finer details are not their cup of tea. They undermine the value of the process needed to finish their task on time.
Defier
These are the individuals with a rebellious streak, taking on a more passive-aggressive approach by creating their own schedule and making it unpredictable. This is a result of feeling frustrated and doubting the importance of completing the tasks.
Over-doer
An over-doer commits to juggling multiple tasks at the same time because they have not prioritized the tasks and find themselves doing a little bit of everything. This is based on the fear of not being able to reach their unrealistic expectations, which causes individuals to take on more tasks than necessary which ultimately hinders them not successfully completing the key tasks.
Worrier
Individuals doubt our capability to successfully complete the task and thus as a result we end up choosing not even to try to attempt the task. These individuals will find themselves in a self-fulfilling prophecy because if they don’t start, they will not succeed.
Perfectionist
These individuals go one step further than the worriers and not just worry about failing but also failing to complete the task perfectly. An example of this would be when we wait for everything to be ready to go in order for us to start the task which in practicality is quite justifiably unreasonable.
Crisis-Maker
Procrastinators that come under this category are motivated by feeling stressed/pressured to complete their tasks by leaving everything to the last minute. They believe that the last-minute panic will allow them to work at their best.
Having read the 6 different types of procrastinators, some of you may find yourself falling under multiple types of categories. Dr Sapadin, states that it is common to fall under different categories and the way we procrastinate is dependent on the context of the situation.
We tend to procrastinate period, it is inevitable. But before we consider potential options to overcome procrastination it is necessary that we understand why we procrastinate. Check out the “How can I avoid procrastinating?” article on ways in which we can work towards reducing the time we spend procrastinating.
References Steel, P. (2007). The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure. Psychological Bulletin, 133(1), 65–94. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.133.1.65 |