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Giving in when feeling less good: Procrastination, action control, and social temptations
Fuschia M Sirois1, Benjamin Giguère2
1Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield, UK.
The British Journal of Social Psychology
|February 18, 2018
Summary
Procrastination is linked to low positive affect, especially when social temptations arise. This makes individuals more likely to abandon tasks when positive feelings are low and distractions are present.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Emotion regulation theories of procrastination often focus on negative affect.
- Positive affect's role in procrastination, particularly with social temptations, is under-explored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between trait procrastination, positive/negative affect, and social temptations.
- To examine how positive affect mediates procrastination under social temptation.
Main Methods:
- Two prospective studies were conducted using moderated mediation analyses.
- Study 1 involved students (N=142) assessing academic procrastination over 48 hours.
- Study 2 involved a community sample (N=94) tracking health behavior changes over 6 months.
Main Results:
- Low positive affect mediated the link between trait procrastination and academic task procrastination.
- Social temptations moderated this effect, increasing procrastination.
- Similar findings were observed for goal enjoyment in the health behavior study.
Conclusions:
- Procrastinators are susceptible to disengaging from tasks when social temptations are present and positive affect is low.
- Understanding the role of positive affect is crucial for interventions targeting procrastination.
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