The Procrastination Equation (22 page)

Notes

Author’s Note

¹
And everyone knew it. Here is an excerpt from a letter my late brother sent to my uncle: “Have you heard from Piers about his research? He has forged himself into an expert on procrastination, publishing numerous articles on the subject and being interviewed on national radio and in the press. I get a chuckle, as Piers was the worst procrastinator during his high school and college years.”

²
Even the philosophers have been fascinated by procrastination, able to sit and watch it for hours:

Andreou, C. (2007). Understanding procrastination. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior, 37(2), 183–193.

Gosling, J. (1990). Weakness of the will. New York: Routledge.

Silver, M. (1974). Procrastination. Centerpoint, 1(1), 49–54.

Sorensen, R. (2006). Originless sin: Rational dilemmas for satisficers. The Philosophical Quarterly, 56(223), 213–223.

³
Katz, I., de Deyn, P., Mintzer, J., Greenspan, A., Zhu, Y., & Brodaty, H. (2007). The efficacy and safety of risperidone in the treatment of psychosis of Alzheimer’s disease and mixed dementia: A meta-analysis of 4 placebo-controlled clinical trials. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 22(5), 475–484.

Lee, J., Seto, D., & Bielory, L. (2008). Meta-analysis of clinical trials of probiotics for prevention and treatment of pediatric atopic dermatitis. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 121(1), 116–121.

⁴
Bowen, F., Rostami, M., & Steel, P. (2010). Meta-analysis of organizational innovation and performance. Journal of Business Research.

Caird, J., Willness, C. R., Steel, P., & Scialfa, C. (2008). A meta-analysis of the effects of cell phones on driver performance. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 40(4), 1282–1293.

Peloza, J., & Steel, P. (2005). The price elasticities of charitable contributions: A meta-analysis. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 24(2), 260–272.

Taras, V., Kirkman, B. L., & Steel, P. (2010). Examining the impact of Culture’s Consequences: A three-decade, multi-level, meta-analytic review of Hofstede’s cultural value dimensions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95 (3), 405–439.

Steel, P. & Kammeyer-Mueller, J. (2002). Comparing meta-analytic moderator search techniques under realistic conditions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(1), 96–111.

Steel, P., & Kammeyer-Mueller, J. (2008). Bayesian variance estimation for meta-analysis: Quantifying our uncertainty. Organizational Research Methods, 11(1), 54–78.

Steel, P., & Kammeyer-Mueller, J. (2009). Using a meta-analytic perspective to enhance Job Component Validation. Personnel Psychology, 62, 533–552.

Steel, P., & Ones, D. (2002). Personality and happiness: A national level of analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(3), 767–781.

Steel, P., & Taras, V. (2010). Culture as a consequence: A multilevel multivariate meta-analysis of the effects of individual and country characteristics on work-related cultural values. Journal of International Management.

Steel, P., Schmidt, J., & Shultz, J. (2008). Refining the relationship between personality and subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 134(1), 138–161.

Chapter One

¹
Astrologers also cluster the twelve signs of the zodiac into quadruplicities, with the Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces group being particularly relevant. Quoting Bertrand Russell, this “quadruplicity drinks procrastination,” as both Sagittarius and Pisces are inebriated with the trait. If you found that sentence awkward, I have a confession. In truth, Bertrand Russell actually intended these words to be an example of a sentence with correct grammar, but whose meaning is nonsensical. However, I was inspired to make sense out of nonsense by the Harvard linguist Yuen Ren Chao, who was Russell’s interpreter when he went to China in the 1920s. He did the same for “Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.” On the other hand, this type of wordplay doesn’t increase your popularity.

²
Gendler, T. S. (2007). Self-deception as a pretense. Philosophical Perspectives, 21(1), 231–258.

Gosling, J. (1990). Weakness of the will. New York: Routledge.

Martin, M. (1986). Self-deception and morality. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.

³
Steel, P. (2007). The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure. Psychological Bulletin, 133(1), 65–94.

⁴
See www.43things.com, a website that has helped millions of people create their life lists.

⁵
Horn, S. (2001). ConZentrate: Get focused and pay attention—when life is filled with pressures, distractions, and multiple priorities. New York: Saint Martin’s Press.

⁶
As part of my research, I documented the professions of 20,000 self-professed procrastinators. For example, it even afflicts pageant contestants; Sara Hoots, former Miss Hooters winner, revealed in her audition video: “My worst trait is procrastination.” However, astronaut and zookeeper weren’t among the ones I recorded. For those instances, we have confessions from Slate’s “Procrasti-Nation: Workers of the world, slack off!”

⁷
Gröpel, P., & Steel, P. (2008). A mega-trial investigation of goal-setting, interest enhancement, and energy on procrastination. Personality and Individual Differences, 45, 406–411.

Silverman, I. (2003). Gender Differences in Delay of Gratification: A Meta-Analysis. Sex Roles, 49(9), 451–463.

⁸
Take your pick:

Burka, J. B., & Yuen, L. M. (1983). Procrastination: Why you do it, what to do about it. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Fiore, N. (1989). The now habit: A strategic program for overcoming procrastination and enjoying guilt-free play. New York: Penguin Putnam, Inc.

Knaus, W. (2002). The procrastination workbook: Your personalized program for breaking free from the patterns that hold you back. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

Peterson, K. E. (1996). The tomorrow trap: Unlocking the secrets of the procrastination-protection syndrome. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc.

⁹
McGarvey, J. (1996). The almost perfect definition. Research/Penn State, 17(3). Retrieved from http://www.rps.psu.edu/sep96/almost.html.

¹⁰
In addition to my “Nature of Procrastination” article, see also:

Canter, D. (2008). Self-appraisals, perfectionism, and academics in college undergraduates. Unpublished PhD, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA.

Yao, M. (2009). An exploration of multidimensional perfectionism, academic self-efficacy, procrastination frequency, and Asian American cultural values in Asian American university students. Unpublished PhD, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.

¹¹
Pullen, F. J. (2003). Perfectionism, procrastination, and other self-reported barriers to completing the doctoral dissertation. Unpublished PhD, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.

¹²
Schouwenburg, H. C. (2004). Academic procrastination: Theoretical notions, measurement, and research. In H. C. Schouwenburg, C. H. Lay, T. A. Pychyl, & J. R. Ferrari (Eds.), Counseling the procrastinator in academic settings (pp. 3–17). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

¹³
Arce, E., & Santisteban, C. (2006). Impulsivity: A review. Psicothema, 18(2), 213–220.

Bembenutty, H., & Karabenick, S. A. (2004). Inherent association between academic delay of gratification, future time perspective, and self-regulated learning.
Educational Psychology Review, 16
(1), 35–57.

Enticott, P., & Ogloff, J. (2006). Elucidation of impulsivity.
Australian Psychologist, 41
(1), 3–14.

Whiteside, S., & Lynam, D. (2001). The Five Factor Model and impulsivity: Using a structural model of personality to understand impulsivity.
Personality and Individual Differences, 30
(4), 669–689.

¹⁴
Bui, N. H. (2007). Effect of evaluation threat on procrastination behavior. Journal of Social Psychology, 147(3), 197–209.

¹⁵
Schouwenburg, H. C. (2004). Academic procrastination: Theoretical notions, measurement, and research. In H. C. Schouwenburg, C. H. Lay, T. A. Pychyl, & J. R. Ferrari (Eds.), Counseling the procrastinator in academic settings (pp. 3–17). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Chapter Two

¹
Overmier, J. B., & Seligman, M. E. P. (1967). Effects of inescapable shock upon subsequent escape and avoidance responding. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 63, 28–33.

Seligman, M., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55, 5–14.

Seligman, M. E. P., & Maier, S. F. (1967). Failure to escape traumatic shock. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 74, 1–9.

²
When I was taught about learned helplessness, my instructor related to me a story about a captured cricket. If you put a cricket in a jar, give it some food and water, and punch in some small air holes for breathing, it will try to escape, launching itself up and hitting its head against the lid. Come back in a few days and take the lid off. The cricket will jump but just stop short of where the top used to be. It can escape at any time, but no longer engages in the behavior that will realize its freedom—the cage is now inside its head.

³
Beck, A. T., & Beck, R. W. (1972). Screening depressed patients in family practice: A rapid technique. Postgraduate Medicine, 52, 81–85.

⁴
Sadly, procrastination itself can even be a cause of the deviation-amplifying loop known as a depression spiral. That is, depression may lead to procrastination, which can cause guilt and self-loathing that deepens the depression, which completes the cycle by causing more procrastination. Such a hollowing out of existence can be further exacerbated if the activities one is putting off are of community and accomplishment, both of which help avoid depression from the start.

Thase, M. E. (1995). Cognitive behavior therapy. In I. D. Glick (Ed.), Treating depression (pp. 33–70). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc.

⁵
Lay, C. H. (1986). At last, my research article on procrastination. Journal of Research in Personality, 20(4), 474–495.

Lay, C. H. (1990). Working to schedule on personal projects: An assessment of person/project characteristics and trait procrastination. Journal of Social Behavior & Personality, 5(3), 9–103.

Milgram, N. (1988). Procrastination in daily living. Psychological Reports, 63(3), 752–754.

Milgram, N. A., Sroloff, B., & Rosenbaum, M. (1988). The procrastination of everyday life. Journal of Research in Personality, 22(2), 197–212.

Sirois, F. M. (2007). “I'll look after my health, later”: A replication and extension of the procrastination-health model with community-dwelling adults. Personality and Individual Differences, 43(1), 15–26.

Sirois, F. M. (2007). Procrastination and motivations for household safety behaviors: An expectancy-value theory perspective. In L. V. Brown (Ed.), Psychology of Motivation (pp. 153–165): Nova Science Publishers.

⁶
Tullier, L. (2000). The complete idiot’s guide to overcoming procrastination. Indianapolis, IN: Alpha Books.

⁷
Chainey, R. The death of the gym membership. Retrieved from http://style.uk.msn.com/getfit/sportandexercise/article.aspx?--cp-documentid=9517875

⁸
Hershey, R. D. (November 28, 1999). Many shoppers won’t do today what they can do on Dec. 24. New York Times.

⁹
Cosmides, L., & Tooby, J. (2000). Evolutionary psychology and the emotions. In M. Lewis & J. Haviland (Eds.), Handbook of Emotions (2 ed., pp. 91–115). New York: Guilford Press.

¹⁰
Whiteside, S., & Lynam, D. (2001). The Five Factor Model and impulsivity: Using a structural model of personality to understand impulsivity. Personality and Individual Differences, 30(4), 669–689.

¹¹
McCrea, S., Liberman, N., Trope, Y., & Sherman, S. (2008). Construal level and procrastination. Psychological Science, 19(12), 1308–1314.

¹²
Here is Hume reflecting on how the nearby and concrete always seems to supersede the long-term and abstract: “In reflecting on any action which I am to perform a twelvemonth hence, I always resolve to prefer the greater good, whether at that time it will be more contiguous or remote; nor does any difference in that particular make a difference in my present intentions and resolutions. My distance from the final determination makes all those minute differences vanish, nor am I affected by anything but the general and more discernible qualities of good and evil. But on my nearer approach, those circumstances which I at first overlooked begin to appear, and have an influence on my conduct and affections. A new inclination to the present good springs up, and makes it difficult for me to adhere inflexibly to my first purpose and resolution. This natural infirmity I may very much regret, and I may endeavour, by all possible means, to free myself from it.”

¹³
Bagassi, M., & Macchi, L. (2007). The “vanishing” of the disjunction effect by sensible procrastination. Mind & Society, 6(1), 41–52.

¹⁴
Laven, A. V. (2007). Freshmen college student mental health and their resource usage. Unpublished EdD dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, CA.

¹⁵
Cannings, R., Hawthorne, K., Hood, K., & Houston, H. (2005). Putting double marking to the test: A framework to assess if it is worth the trouble. Medical Education, 39, 299–308.

Newstead, S. (2002). Examining the examiners: Why are we so bad at assessing students?
Psychology Learning and Teaching, 2
(2), 70–75.

¹⁶
Caron, M. D., Whitbourne, S. K., & Halgan, R. P. (1992). Fraudulent excuse making among college students. Teaching of Psychology, 19(2), 90–93.