A Lack of Focus, Not Task Avoidance, Makes the Difference: Work Routines in Procrastinators and Non-Procrastinators

Abstract

Procrastination may be seen as the outcome of a learning history of delaying the onset of task execution and its completion, both in terms of time and effort. In this study, we examined the performance of 55 university students who carried out two writing tasks consisting of summarizing two academic papers, each within a different time slot (i.e., five vs. three days to complete). The two assignments were part of the class activity and were perceived by participants as homogeneous in terms of text appreciation and difficulty, therefore making the two conditions comparable. The Pure Procrastination Scale was used to categorize subjects as high and low procrastinators, and to compare their performances. Results show that students who report more procrastination behaviors tend to increase their productivity as the deadline approaches, while low procrastinators are more productive throughout the time at their disposal, with peak activity during the intermediate day. Such a strategy was consistent across two deadlines (five vs. three days), and the difference between the two subgroups can be ascribed to the task-oriented coping style, which seems to be lacking in high-procrastinators.

Patterns in assignment submission times: Analysis of factors contributing to undergraduate students’ commitment to core-curriculum related course

“…Our final hypothesis (H4), which states that there would be a relationship between the types of tasks (project, written assignments, presentations) and the commitment to the course can, therefore, be accepted. Research has shown that task aversion or level of unpleasantness, perceptions of boredom or uninteresting a student associates with a task could be a significant factor in student delay in starting, working on, and finishing assignments [ 19 , 33 , 34 ]. It is demonstrated in our study that students are more likely to submit the task on time when it is related to the presentation as compared to written assignments which also recorded a high percentage and frequency of no submission.…”