An Exploratory Study on Sleep Procrastination: Bedtime vs. While-in-Bed Procrastination

Abstract

Sleep Procrastination literature has focused on the behaviors individuals engage in before going to bed (Bedtime Procrastination) but not on the behaviors individuals engage in after going to bed (While-in-Bed Procrastination). The main goal of this study is to explore whether this While-in-Bed procrastination is a novel phenomenon that adds to the Sleep Procrastination literature. The study was conducted online with 400 high school students (Mage = 16.56; 139 males) recruited through personal contacts and social media. The Bedtime procrastination scale was adapted and validated for this sample, whereas the While-in-Bed Procrastination scale was developed for this study. Data show a low correlation (r = 0.158 **) between Bedtime and While-in-Bed Procrastination scales, suggesting that Sleep Procrastination may be composed of the two facets. Additionally, results showed that more Bedtime Procrastination was related to later waking time and later dinnertime hours, whereas more While-in-Bed Procrastination was linked to being male, later desired time to sleep, and earlier dinnertime hour. Findings indicate that solely assessing Bedtime Procrastination as representing the procrastination of Sleep is limited and overlooks a significant part of this behavior. This exploratory study adds a new perspective to the literature by stressing the role of While-in-Bed Procrastination, thus opening new research pathways.

The Mediator Role of Routines on the Relationship between General Procrastination, Academic Procrastination and Perceived Importance of Sleep and Bedtime Procrastination

“…We believe that this excess of energy could happen due to certain delayed routines, such as later dinner and wake-up times. In fact, previous research shows that having dinner later is associated with higher Bedtime Procrastination [14].…”

“…The Portuguese version of the Bedtime Procrastination Scale [14], originally developed by Kroese et al [10], was used to evaluate Bedtime Procrastination. The adapted version is a nine-item instrument (e.g., "I go to bed later than I had intended"), with four of these items being reverse scored (e.g., "I can easily stop engaging with my activities when it is time to go to bed").…”

“…Bedtime Procrastination is the delay of sleep time before going to bed, in the absence of external reasons that justify these behaviors [12]. Bedtime Procrastination is associated with later wake-up times, later dinner times [13][14][15], morningness and eveningness [16,17], depression symptoms, anxiety, and insomnia [18,19]. Needlessly delaying sleep time has already been researched in a variety of populations and within different age groups [12,13,16,20], with literature showing that university students tend to engage in more Bedtime Procrastination compared to the general population [13].…”

“…Lastly, regarding the routine-related factors, we analyzed two variables that have previously been identified to be relevant in regard to Bedtime Procrastination: Dinner Time and Wake-up Time [13,14]. In a qualitative study, many people indicated that they delayed going to bed because they believed that they would be unable to sleep if they tried to bed earlier at a time when they felt excess amounts of energy [15].…”

“…Grounded on previous research, three models (Figure 1) were devised with the following hypotheses Time and Wake-up Time [13,14]. In a qualitative study, many people indicated that they delayed going to bed because they believed that they would be unable to sleep if they tried to bed earlier at a time when they felt excess amounts of energy [15].…”