Teacher Procrastination, Emotions, and Stress: A Qualitative Study

Area of Science:

• Educational Psychology
• Occupational Health Psychology

Background:

• Teacher stress and burnout negatively impact educators and students.
• Procrastination is a potential, yet under-researched, source of teacher stress.
• Existing research often relies on general self-report scales, limiting in-depth understanding.

Purpose of the Study:

• To qualitatively investigate the phenomenology of teacher procrastination.
• To examine the links between teacher procrastination, emotional experiences, and stress.
• To understand the prevalence and reasons for delaying professional tasks among teachers.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study involving personal interviews with 27 teachers in Germany.
• Analysis of data from 16 teachers who reported procrastination using qualitative content analysis.
• Utilized both deductive and inductive category application for data analysis.

Main Results:

• Teachers procrastinate on administrative, organizational, and grading tasks, primarily due to task aversiveness.
• Procrastination is associated with predominantly negative emotions.
• Teachers perceive their procrastination behavior as moderately stressful, identifying it as a potential occupational stressor.

Conclusions:

• Teacher procrastination is a relevant phenomenon linked to negative emotional experiences and stress.
• Task aversiveness is a key driver for procrastination in the teaching profession.
• Further research is needed to explore interventions and the broader impact of teacher procrastination.